


Love is the Drug

by EllaBurnella



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Sucker Punch (2011)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal Sex, Awkward Flirting, Crush at First Sight, Dark Past, F/F, Gangsters, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, M/M, Nightclub, Oral Sex, POV Finn (Star Wars), Past Sexual Abuse, Prostitution, Protective Poe Dameron, Romance, Stormpilot, Sucker Punch Influence, Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-14
Updated: 2019-12-31
Packaged: 2021-01-30 12:03:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 25
Words: 76,750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21427918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EllaBurnella/pseuds/EllaBurnella
Summary: Finn Storm is an orphan. He lives in a boarding house. He goes to college. He has a job. That is everything there is to know about him.Finn doesn't mind his un-extraordinary life, until his friends drag him to the hottest nightclub in town. Club Dameron has it all...live shows, a gourmet restaurant, and the best alcohol money can buy. But the only attraction Finn is interested in, is the flirtatious club owner who has taken a liking to him.Amidst the growing romance, Finn is thrust into a world of sex, violence, and secrets, of which Poe Dameron has many... and their growing attachment to each other may not survive the harsh realities of Poe's dark past.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Poe Dameron/Finn
Comments: 48
Kudos: 121





	1. Chapter 1

Rey had spoken of the club to me many times. She and a group of others from the boarding house go almost every month, ever since they dragged her off to it on the Saturday evening when she had finally turned twenty one. I had elected to stay behind that night on account of not enjoying the chaos and claustrophobia of clubs and parties. 

I still don’t relish the idea of spending hours in a compact building with music so loud you can hardly make out what your brain is trying to say to you. I’ve never drank a drop of alcohol in my life, and most importantly, I’m convinced I am the most socially awkward person who’s ever existed.

Nevertheless, even though two years have passed since I’d reached the required age to enter any club, Friday night of February 2nd, is the night my small group of friends at the Takodana Eastside Boarding House, decided it was high time I accompanied them to Club Dameron. 

“Don’t think you’re gonna hide in there all night, Finn Storm!” Jessika’s sing-song voice calls out from the hallway as I hear her walk past the bathroom, her heels clapping loudly against the hardwood floor. “You are _not_ getting out of this one!”__

_ _I turn away from the closed door and stare at myself in the small bathroom mirror above the sink. I don’t get to look at myself much, on account of not having a mirror in my room and having to be on a bit of a time crunch whenever I’m in the one bathroom I have to share with four other people in this house. _ _

_ _Or maybe because there’s not much to look at. _ _

_ _I don’t have any party clothes. I never had the need for them. I don’t even have anything that could be deemed as remotely chic or fashionable. I work a retail job, so I never had the need to own anything fancier than jeans, t shirts, and converse. Which is what I have on for tonight, and what I’ve worn pretty much everyday of my life. _ _

_ _If I’m lucky, I’ll be able to find some corner to stick to until the night’s over and no one will have reason to notice my drab club clothing. _ _

_ _I jump slightly when someone begins rapping on the wooden door. _ _

_ _“Done primping?” Rose asks as I open the door. _ _

_ _She never chooses to go too over the top when she goes out. Tonight she has on a simple light blue summer dress and the pink sweatshirt she wears everyday with her normal clothes. The only makeup she chose was some very bright fuschia lipstick.  
I roll my eyes, giving a small grin. _ _

_ _“What is there to primp?” I ask her, closing the door behind me. “I’ll be lucky if they let me through the door with these clothes.” _ _

_ _“You’re too modest,” she giggles as we walk down the hall toward the stairs. “You always look just fine.”_ _

_ _“Oh, just fine?” I ask in mock offense, because I know how she’ll react. “I thought I at least looked slightly spectacular.”_ _

_ _“I didn’t mean it like that,” she quickly explains, sounding terrified, as if she had actually hurt my feelings. “I mean fine as in, um… handsome, and-”_ _

_ _“Rose, calm down,” I laugh quietly as we walk down the spiral stairs leading down to the entryway. “I know what you meant.”_ _

_ _As always, she gives me a huge, bashful smile, her eyes lighting up at me in amusement. _ _

_ _I look up once we get to the bottom of the stairs, seeing the other three members of our party already set to go at the front door. _ _

_ _Jessika is of course wearing a tight fitting sleeveless leather dress that doesn’t leave much to the imagination, paired with leopard print high heels and an expensive looking brown jacket. _ _

_ _Kaydel, the youngest of our group, has on a blindingly glittery brown and gold skirt paired with a matching crop top, along with a handful of sparkling necklaces. She wears a fur covered white coat for our walk on the way to the club._ _

_ _Rey is dressed similarly to Kaydel. The two had gone shopping yesterday after they got off work and bought much of the same attire. Yet somehow Rey manages to look even more dazzling than Kaydel, and more alluring than Jessika._ _

_ _She wears lacy black leggings stitched with complex patterns, matched with a pair of black low heeled boots she’d gotten a while ago. Her shiny bronze colored party dress is designed in a way that shows a bit of skin on her stomach, fitting snugly around her upper body, and hanging loosely around her waist. _ _

_ _The group of flashing jewelry around her neck matches Kaydel’s, as does her fur coat, only Rey’s is in black, matching the shimmering black clutch she was incredibly ecstatic about purchasing from the department store yesterday. _ _

_ _She curled her hair, but only to where it bounces slightly, still laying loosely down her shoulders. She had put on only a light layer of makeup, some lipgloss, eye shadow, maybe some blush. Even though she’s beautiful enough to never wear the stuff, she insists on at least putting a bit on whenever going out. _ _

_ _“You look… um…,” I stutter, trying not to look directly at Rey, while trying to find the right words to compliment her. _ _

_ _“Amazing, gorgeous, sexy,” Jessika sighs, throwing her arm around Rey’s shoulders dramatically. Rey smiles the scrunched up grin she always makes. “Thank you Finn, we know we all look like knockouts.”_ _

_ _“You look charming as always,” Rey tells me, her eyes smiling over at me. _ _

_ _“Yeah, it’s a shame you don’t change your clothes once in a while,” Jessika sighs, shaking her head. “We might be able to make somethin’ out of you if you let us dress you sometime.”_ _

_ _Of course Jess is just kidding, but she has asked me many times to allow her and the girls to pick out clothes for me. It’s not that I would mind it, but I prefer saving up my money to get out of here someday, rather than blowing it all on snazzy clothes for parties I’ll never go to. _ _

_ _“He looks fine, Jess,” Rose protests as the others laugh. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the way he dresses.” _ _

_ _“Rose is right, you look perfectly acceptable, Finn,” Rey assures me. _ _

_ _“Yeah, don’t listen to me,” Jessika shrugs dismissively. _ _

_ _“Come on, guys, can we go now?” Kaydel asks, practically bouncing up and down. This is her first time going to the club as well, since she just turned twenty one last week. _ _

_ _“We shall!” Jessika declares, marching toward the door and throwing it open. “Let’s go, I don’t want to be standing in line all night to get in.”_ _

_ _Kaydel happily skips out the door behind Jessika, while Rey turns toward me, holding her arm out. _ _

_ _I step toward her, linking my arm with hers, while Rose follows us out, shutting and locking the door behind us. _ _

_ _We walk briskly out into the chilly, winter night air, Jess and Kaydel practically running ahead of us, while I have to try to keep up with Rey’s long and quick steps. _ _

_ _“I know you’re going to love this place, Finn,” she tells me again. “I know how much you hate clubs and parties, but… this place is different.” _ _

_ _“Well, if I hadn't heard it from you, I wouldn’t have come,” I reply. “I trust you to not drag me into anything that will cause me to die of boredom.” _ _

_ _Rey and I have both been orphans our whole lives. We grew up in the same orphanage for eighteen years, until we eventually both chose to settle in the same boarding house. She’s been my best friend my entire life, my only friend for most of it. So there’s really no one in the world I trust more. _ _

_ _“I don’t think a single soul could be bored here,” she says, looking almost dreamily out on the street ahead of us as we follow Jess and Kay down the many streets that will eventually lead us into the city. “There’s something… exciting about this place. I’ve told you, it’s like nothing I’ve ever seen before, or since.” _ _

_ _“Ok, now I feel like you’re taking me to some kind of cult,” I jab teasingly as she smiles. “Please tell me I’m not about to be sacrificed to a demon. Or put under some spell.”_ _

_ _“Oh, well I can’t guarantee that,” she admits, tilting her head pointedly. “There may very well be some kind of drug in the air that makes you believe you’re on cloud nine the whole night.” _ _

_ _“Well, you Jess and Rose survived, so I hopefully don’t have anything to worry about.” _ _

_ _“You’ll be alright, Finn,” Rose tells me, walking up beside me. “You know I’d never let them take you anywhere you couldn’t handle.” _ _

_ _I chuckle, staring down at the ground._ _

_ _“I know, I know. I’m lucky to have all of you.”_ _

_ _“Lucky to have us so that we force you to go to clubs on Saturday nights instead of staying in your room and reading?” Rey asks mockingly. _ _

_ _“Well, isn’t that just what friends are for?” I sigh, putting my arm around Rose’s shoulders as we all continue walking into the night. _ _

_ _Canto Bight is only just outside Takodana. About a ten minute drive from where we live, but much longer if you’re walking. None of us feel up to the challenge of trying to park a car on a Saturday night in the city, and there’s no bus that will drop us off close enough, so hiking is our only option._ _

_ _It’s at this time when I’m extremely grateful for my casual choice of clothing, and I feel very sorry for the girls who are all in some form of heeled shoes, and in clothing that is certainly low on the list of preferred choices for a night in February. _ _

_ _Needless to say, eighty percent of our group is shivering by the time we arrive in Canto Bight. _ _

_ _I’ve only been to the overpopulated city a handful of times in my life, really only for whenever one of the girls wanted to go to a restaurant over here for their birthday, but that hasn’t been in years. Being the way I am about crowded places, it’s not a destination I’m always eager to visit. _ _

_ _It’s still a few blocks away, but I can easily see journey’s-end from where we are. _ _

_ _All of the buildings are tall in Canto Bight, but this one is certainly the easiest one to spot. I’ve never seen a single building so lit up before in my life. _ _

_ _I’m positive the flashing, yet somehow regal neon lights would be visible to any airplane passing overhead at thirty eight thousand feet above. _ _

_ _The structure of the actual building looks old fashioned, but not in the way our boarding house does. There’s an elegance to it. A silent strength resonating from the painted stone building that reaches at least fifteen stories. _ _

_ _The upper levels of the building must be where the hotel rooms are. _ _

_ _As we get closer, we see that the line is pretty much all the way down the street, kept organized by an array of gold posts and ropes, as if it were a red carpet event._ _

_ _“I told you it gets busy on weekends,” Jessika groans in distress as Kaydel and I stare in wide eyed amazement at the elaborate display before us. _ _

_ _Now that I can see the entire building, my eyes trail down to the lit up sign standing just above the line of glass doors that lead into the club. _ _

“Did I ever ask you why it’s called Club _Dameron_?” I ask, gazing up at the sign as Rey and Jessika pull us into line among the crowd of anxiously waiting visitors. __

_ _ _ _ _ _“That’s the guy’s name,” Jessika calls back mindlessly to me as she eagerly stares at the long line ahead to where two men in black suits are slowly but surely letting people inside. _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“What guy?”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“The owner,” Rey answers, turning to face me. “Finn, remember, we told you about him.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh, right,” I nod, though I don’t remember that well at all. I honestly probably dismissed anything they had told me after the night Rey had first gone, since I had assumed it was just another random club that would come and go. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I actually start to feel anxious as we stand in line, stepping forward every minute or so, getting closer and closer to the two men in the black suits. It’s probably just nerves from the claustrophobia that is sure to come on as soon as we walk through the glass doors. I’ve been to exactly three clubs in my life, and each one has been the same amount of distress. Never mind how nice everything looks, it doesn’t matter much if you can’t see or hear anything. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The only thing that holds my interest is what Rey had said. I know she wouldn’t lie to me and tell me I’d enjoy something I usually hate. So there must be something about this place, otherwise she wouldn’t have let Jessika make me come along. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _But so far, it just looks like a slightly bigger budgeted version of the same thing I’ve shuffled through before. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“It’s nearly nine,” Kaydel says, looking down at her phone after we’ve been standing here for about fifteen minutes in the freezing air. “How long are we even going to stay?”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Kay, the good stuff doesn’t even start until ten,” Jessika insists, spinning around in slow circles in her boredom. “You have to stay until at least midnight.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Is there really enough to keep us entertained for three whole hours?” I ask doubtfully. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Are you kidding?” Rey asks, gesturing toward the towering building. You could nearly tip over backwards trying to look at the top when standing this close. “You could practically get lost in this place for days!” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“It’s really cool, Finn,” Rose tells me eagerly as we move up another couple of steps. We’re only a few feet away now. “There’s live shows, a restaurant, a casino…”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“The place runs all night, and even throughout the day,” Jessika adds. “I heard in the daytime it’s more of a fine wine and dine sorta place, you know?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Kaydel is as antsy as ever as we get closer and closer to the entrance. My heart starts racing as well, though again, I’m not sure why. I actually find myself starting to shiver along with the others, despite my proper attire. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _After nearly twenty minutes in line, our party is ushered to the front once the group of three in front of us are admitted in.  
The two men in the suits are far more intimidating up close. Especially when they’re looking you up and down as if they suspect you’re trying to bring a bomb into the club you’re trying to enter. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Jess holds up the ID card she’d gotten from being a frequent visitor here. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“She’s my plus one,” she tells them when they turn to Kaydel, who in turn holds up her driver’s license. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _They scan Jess’s card, look briefly over whatever flashes up on the screen, then nod. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Rey walks up next, pulling me along with her, and holding her card up to the two men. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Plus one,” she says, nodding over to me as I offer them my driver’s license. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The two men narrow their eyes as they seem to scrutinize every inch of me before deciding I’m good to go, I suppose. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _They scan her card, then Rose’s, until we’re finally all verified. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _One of the men reaches over to unhook the rope blocking off the doors, and we’re all steered through the glass doors, and into the building. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _My eyes reflexively squint shut as we enter the dark room, and I feel myself tense up, ready for the overwhelming sensation to hit. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The room is lit with a sharp turquoise light, illuminating the entirety of the room rather adequately, which is something I haven’t known clubs to be good at doing. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The ceiling is patterned with large white arches and the dance floor is off to the left side of the room. It’s the typical white tiled, blinking light display, filled to the brim with people grinding on each other along to the thumping music. But unlike the three other clubs I’ve been to, actual songs seem to be playing over these speakers, instead of music that sounds as if it’s been snatched from the free use list and shoved together in an endless mash of nothingness. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The other side of the room is where the bar is, across a smooth hardwood surface that reflects the striking blue light all throughout the room. The bar stretches all the way across the room, lined with seemingly millions of crisp white cushioned bar stools held up on shiny silver stands. A large glass wall shelved with thousands of glistening bottles stands invitingly behind the bar._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Everything in here vastly contrasts the outside look of the old fashioned building. And I have to admit, it’s probably the nicest looking bar in existence. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Kaydel’s eyes light up as if she’s in wonderland. She, much like myself, looks like she doesn’t even know what to do with herself. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Rey walks up next to her, grabbing ahold of her hand and smiling excitedly with her before the two of them skip off towards the dance floor. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Come on!” Rose laughs over the music, circling both her hands around my arm and pulling me over to the intimidating dance floor. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I instinctively start to protest, shaking my head as I watch Rey, Jess, and Kay all hang their jackets on a ling of silver coat racks set up just off of the dancefloor. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I’m really… I’m not in the mood for dancing!” I call back to Rose, trying to keep my feet firmly planted where they are. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Gotta loosen up a bit, Finn!” Jess calls over her shoulder, hoping right up onto the strobing dance floor, gaining the attention of a few guys right away. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Rey and Kaydel are dancing around with each other like they’re on top of the world. Rey has always loved to dance. Though there isn’t much she doesn’t love. I’ve rarely seen a time when she didn’t look alive with happiness. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I realize Rose is still standing beside me, waiting for me to follow her and join the others. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I think I’ll just go get a drink,” I tell her, already turning slightly to head toward the bar. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _She looks slightly stunned, but nods slowly. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh… ok.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _She walks over with me as I head toward the display across the room, wondering what the hell I’m even going to order. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Usually, I’d never drink at a club. I’d just find an empty spot to stand in the corner and watch my friends have a good time. But to be honest, something about the large wall of shining bottles and comfy looking stools looks very relaxing at the moment. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Having never consumed alcohol before, I am incredibly perplexed when looking up at the infinite selection once I’ve taken a seat at the counter. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Just don’t drink too much,” Rose speaks worriedly as she shuffles in next to me. “You’ve never drank before, so if you do any more than a couple, you’ll be sick.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Wasn’t my intention,” I assure her. “Uh… what do you suggest?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _She smirks, glancing up at the wall. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You should try something light. Like a margarita. They’re amazing here.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I nod at her suggestion as one of the many bartenders walks up to us. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“What will it be?” the young woman dressed in a sleek black half sleeved shirt and pants asks us, smiling brightly as if she were just having the time of her life. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I’ll have the frozen strawberry margarita,” Rose starts. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _They both turn to me as I quickly look over the list of margaritas up on the wall. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Um… I guess I’ll have the pomegranate,” I decide. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Coming right up,” the woman smiles, before turning to grab a few glasses from the cabinets under the wall, placing them on the back counter and then choosing the bottles from the wall. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“They don’t taste too strong,” Rose explains as I curiously watch the woman prepare our drinks. “It’s kind of like fruit juice, but with a kick.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Uh huh,” I nod, _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _It’s quiet as we wait for our drinks to be ready, and I can tell Rose is getting nervous again, something that always seems to happen whenever we’re alone together and she can’t think of something to say. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I wish she wouldn’t do that, she has no reason to feel uncomfortable around me. I’m perfectly fine with sitting in silence with someone, I’ve done it with Rey about a million times. We could easily spend hours just sitting in a room together working or reading or doing whatever without having to say a word. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Our drinks are finally finished off, topped with thin black straws. They’re slid over to us on very tiny cloth napkins. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Mine is a light shade of red with a soft green lime perched on the side of the glass and sugar sprinkled on the rim. Rose’s looks like it’s much frothier than mine, with a small bundle of sliced strawberries on one side. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“On three?” Rose giggles, watching me stare apprehensively at the drink as I slowly lift it from the counter. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I grin, shaking my head before taking a deep breath and putting the glass to my lips. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The cold, fruity liquid spills past my lips, leaving a strong tangy flavor on my tongue. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You’re right,” I nod, swirling my tongue around my mouth for a moment while I get used to the unusual flavor. “That’s definitely stronger than fruit juice.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Mm hm. I think I still like fruit juice better.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I agree,” I reply, coughing slightly after taking another sip of the drink. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _We stay at the bar, chatting every now and then about this and that, how nice everything looks, or how ridiculous some people’s dance moves are. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _After a while, when our drinks are down to their last sips, I find myself just relaxing and getting lost in the good music they’re playing. I have to say, this is the most comfortable I’ve ever been at a social event. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _It’s been about an hour before Rey and Kaydel are running back over to us, looking just as exhilarated as when we first got here. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You guys are missing out,” Kay laughs, plopping down in an empty seat behind Rose. “I’ve never had so much fun in my life!” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You haven’t even seen the half of it,” Rey promises, taking a seat next to me. “This is just an intro.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“She’s right,” Rose nods. “And we’d better go before the show starts. Isn’t it almost ten?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Shit, you’re right,” Rey remembers, looking down at her phone. “We’d better head over to the showroom.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _She hops up from her seat, waving Jess over, who seems to be a bit preoccupied with two younger gentlemen ogling her very excitedly as she dances suggestively in between them. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Jess has always been rather good at making new friends. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Where exactly are we going?” I try to clarify after Rey has dragged Jess away from the dance floor and starts ushering all of us toward the back of the bar. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Why, to the main event of course,” Jessika answers, linking arms with both Kaydel and me, leading us toward, what I thought was just a wall, but turns out to be a very large door. “You can’t come to Club Dameron without getting the full experience.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I almost jokingly ask Rey if this is where the cult part will come in, but I’m honestly intensely curious as we arrive at the door and Jess steps forward to press a small button discreetly placed off to the side of the door. I can’t tell if it made any kind of a noise or not since the music is so loud, but after a couple seconds, the heavy door slowly peeks open, another burly looking man in a black suit looking at us suspiciously. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _We go through almost the same routine we went through at the front entrance, with Rey, Jess, and Rose all showing their ID cards, indicating Kay and I as the plus ones, then being cautiously let in through the door, just in time too, because it seems like everyone else in the bar is starting to look over at us._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The music blasting throughout the club immediately silences after we’ve stepped past the threshold into the next room. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Jess tries pulling us further in, but Kaydel and I are stopped dead in our tracks, our eyes widening as our mouths nearly drop to the floor. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _This room makes the club we were just in look no bigger than a pantry. It’s as if we’ve stepped into an entirely different world. The grand ballroom-like theater we’ve just entered can in no way be of any relation to the modern looking dance club we’ve come from. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The rich red carpeted floor is littered with an assortment of round tables, all different sizes, some seating an entire party of twelve, others only two. Large, gold colored pillars reach up from the ground to the high ceiling, at least thirty feet from where we stand and littered with twinkling chandeliers. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Loads of people are either standing or sitting, but this audience is vastly different from the one we had just been apart of a minute ago._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Everyone here is older, dressed in suits or evening gowns, looking as if they should be lounging at a prestigious charity banquet, not a nightclub in Canto Bight. They certainly didn’t go through the front entrance and through the dance club, and that is confirmed by a group of people being let in through a large set of double doors on the side of the room. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _What throws me off just as much is the servers roaming around, holding trays and offering drinks to the patrons. All of them are women, dressed in glittering gold corsets that frill around their waists and tiny black shorts that look more like undergarments. They all have a matching hairdo of high ponytails, swinging as they walk past the hordes of excited eyes, swaying their hips slightly as they go. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _At the front of the room, seemingly miles away from where we’ve entered, is a magnificent looking stage, it’s contents hidden away by a heavy fabric, fiery dyed curtain. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _In the back of the room, where we’re standing now, is another bar, much smaller than the one in the dance club, but much more regal looking. Shiny black surfaces make up the counter and shelves of this one, and only a few people linger here, most of them occupying the wide space of the rest of the breathtaking room. Another one of the scantily dressed servers is standing behind the counter, serving drinks. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“This is spectacular,” Kaydel breathes, practically spinning her head around in circles as we tentatively step further into the scene._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Are we even allowed to be in here?” I ask quietly, suddenly becoming a million times more self aware of how I’m dressed. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Don’t be ridiculous, Finn,” Rey laughs, grabbing ahold of my hand and dragging me forward. “Now we’d better find a table before all the good ones are taken.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“A table,” I laugh in astonishment. “Rey… are we allowed to sit next to these people…”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh, Finn,” she giggles, shaking her head before turning to look at me. “Relax. We wouldn’t have gotten membership cards if we weren’t allowed to go to any parts of the club. Trust me, we come in here every time. They won’t kick us out just because we’re not rich.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“If we could only find Poe, he’d probably get us a table,” Jess sighs, scanning the room while balancing on her tiptoes. However she’s able to do that in those crazy shoes she’s wearing. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Yeah, where is he?” Rey wonders, following Jess’s gaze. “We need to introduce Kay and Finn.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Hey, can we get a drink?” Kay asks, turning towards the bar. “Because I didn’t get to have one back there in-”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Hey hey, I see him!” Jess gasps in relief, waving her arm over at someone across the room. “Poe! Oh, he’ll get us a spot for sure.” The fancy dressed patrons all begin to stare at us now that Jess is calling attention to our out of place group. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“How long do these things even go?” I ask. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Not that long,” Rey shakes her head. “But don’t worry Finn, it’s actually really entertaining.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“What is it even about?” I question, watching as another server walks by, her hair sweeping against my arm as she goes. “Because I’m afraid I can guess.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Well, I know, but it’s less about the content of the show, and more about the spectacle of-” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Ladies! Long time no see, I thought you disappeared on me!” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I turn around to see a man walking toward us through the crowd._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The first thing I notice about him is his suit. It’s different than everyone else’s. White jacket with a silver tie tucked in that shimmers in the light. His shoes are shinier and his pants are nicer. Even everything about his presence somehow reinforces that he is the owner. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I stand frozen as he approaches closer, and I’m able to see him better. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _It’s as if something suddenly shifts. The man’s aura is overwhelming, yet welcoming. He wears a million dollar smile with his dark hair slicked professionally back, leaving his strikingly handsome face in full view. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _His dark eyes somehow look alive with excitement, just like how Rey’s are, yet his even more. He looks at her and Jessika as if he couldn’t be happier to see anyone else. I’m startled to feel an urge in the pit of my stomach that wants him to look at me. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You know we can’t stay away for too long,” Jessika grins throwing her arms around his waist in a friendly hug. “Not since you got us these handy little cards.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Ah, I told you they’d be worth it,” the man raises his eyebrows, pointing his finger knowingly. He turns to look over at Rey, his smile returning once again. “Rey Kenobi, you look gorgeous as always.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Thank you, Poe,” she smiles as he embraces her as well. “You look just as stunning as always.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Why thank you my dear, but I’m afraid all the credit will have to go to Vera, she’s always able to find these crazy outfits for me to wear.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _His eyes look past Rey, over to where Rose is standing. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Miss Rose Tico,” he grins, pulling her into a friendly hug. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Good to see you again, Poe,” Rose smiles brightly. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Poe, we have some new people to show to you,” Jessika says, taking ahold of Kaydel and pulling her up to the front. “This is Kaydel, the one we told you about…” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Of course, the one who just turned twenty one,” the man smiles knowingly, as if he’d been hearing about Kaydel for months. “Congratulations, my dear. I hope you’ve been having a good time.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He takes her hand in his and I see a couple rings flash on his fingers in the light. He plants a kiss on top of her hand, making her giggle. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“It’s been amazing,” she tells him eagerly and he returns her enthusiastic smile. “I can’t believe how beautiful this place is.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Well, we do our best,” he tells her. “And hopefully you’ll enjoy the show tonight as well.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I freeze as his gaze finally lands on me, his charming smile turning curious._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“This is Finn,” Rey introduces me, stepping aside so that he can see me in full, which suddenly makes me want to run. “Remember, I’ve told you about him before.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Of course,” he nods slowly, recognition swimming through his eyes, as if I were some far off acquaintance he suddenly remembers. “Very nice to finally meet you, Finn.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He holds my gaze as he reaches down to take my hand, bringing it to his lips. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I feel a shudder go through me as I feel his soft lips touching against my skin, only for less than a second, but enough to feel as if electricity had been shot through my body. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I’m Poe Dameron,” he introduces himself as he lowers my hand, and I let it drop limply back to my side._ _ _ _


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the nice comments!

I realize it’s my turn to say something. 

“Good to meet you, Poe,” I answer, my voice suddenly sounding different than normal. I was about an inch away from stuttering the entire simple sentence. 

“Now, you’re gonna have to have another one of those raffles,” Jessika says dramatically. “Because we need Finn and Kay to have their own ID cards to get in for free.”

“We have one once every year,” Poe answers, as I carefully shift my eyes to the ground, noticing he hasn’t taken his gaze away from me. “So the next one isn’t for a few months. But no worries. We’ll find a solution.” 

“Good, because I want to come here every night!” Kay laughs. 

“Well that’s good to hear,” Poe smiles at her. “In that case… I just might be able to pull a few strings to get something worked out. Since I know your friends are very valued guests.”

“Speaking of pulling a few strings…” Jess starts slowly, her eyes pleading at the man. He begins nodding in understanding. 

“Don’t you worry,” he says, looking off toward the front of the room. “I’ve got the perfect spot for you guys, just a few feet from the stage.” 

“You’re kidding,” Rey grins broadly, following his gesture. 

“No no, I always keep a few tables spare for my best visitors. I’d suggest you all take your seats pretty soon though, the show’s gonna be starting pretty soon.” 

“Then I guess you have to get going,” Rose acknowledges. 

“Unfortunately yes,” Poe nods sadly, putting his hands together. “But it was lovely talking with you ladies again. You need to come by more often.”

“If we came here any more often, we’d be here every week,” Rey laughs. 

“Ugh, I wish,” Jess sighs as we all begin following Poe through the maze of tables filling the room. “I’d live here if I could.”

Poe leads us all the way down until we’re almost right in front of the stage. The platform looks a lot bigger once we’re closer to it, almost to the point where it’s overwhelming. The only stages I’ve ever seen are the ones at school that are used for talent shows and recitals, but that isn’t really a fair comparison.

“Here we are,” Poe announces, stopping at an adequately sized round table off to the side of the room, at a spot where we still get an incredible full view of the stage. “Third best seats in the house, I guarantee.” 

“Poe, this is fantastic!” Jessika laughs excitedly as she and Rose begin to file into the seats. Kaydel sits down next, and I follow behind Rey for the last seat. 

Before I can reach down and pull the chair out, Poe’s hand gracefully arrives first, his fingers circling around the smooth wood as it soundlessly slides against the carpet. I feel his other hand lightly touch against my back as he guides me to the seat, before I clumsily plop down onto the cushioned chair, my face feeling hot. 

“I want you all to enjoy yourselves,” Poe says as the girls smile giddily up at him. “Don’t be afraid to ask any of our lovely servers to get you something to drink, our bar is stocked with the finest tonight.”

He glances up at Kaydel, bowing his head slightly. 

“It was wonderful to meet you,” he acknowledges as Kaydel smiles back eagerly. 

Poe’s eyes then jump to me, the light heartedness still there, but with something heavier behind them. 

“I hope to see you again soon.”

I know he was speaking to all of us, but he acted as if the last comment was meant for me alone. 

I know I should say something to him, but it’s like my throat has closed up, or my tongue is refusing to allow me to speak. He turns and walks away before I can respond, and the only thing I can think to do when he walks off, is to reach up and snatch the baseball hat off my head, figuring it’s quite rude to be wearing it in a place like this. 

The girls all go back to chatting excitedly, telling Kay about how great the show will be, while all I can do is follow Poe Dameron with my eyes as much as I can. I see him suddenly stop and begin talking to a very tall man with dark hair, before the crowd of people gathering in preparation for the show to start, shroud him from view. 

I turn back to the table, feeling very confused at where my head is at right now. I feel like I want to leave, but at the same time, I feel as if I’ll miss out on some opportunity if I go now. 

I’m glad none of the girls try talking to me for the moment, because for some reason, I’m feeling incredibly embarrassed, and would prefer just to stare blankly down at the table for now. At least so that I can attempt to organize my thoughts. 

I’ve never had tons of crushes in my life. Even in kindergarten when everyone in the class was supposed to have a crush on someone and tell everyone about it, I never found myself wanting to even commit that much to someone. 

The only person I can think of, of course, would be Rey. 

Rey… I do like Rey. I’ve known her almost my whole life. 

But this feels so different. All of a sudden, I’m out of breath. I don’t know what to say. I wanted him to stay and talk more, but why?

I can’t have a crush on someone I just met.

The lights suddenly dim, and I snap out of my thoughts to realize that everyone has quieted down and taken their seats. I don’t see Poe anywhere, but it’s difficult to be sure since the only things lighting the room now are the small lamps stationed at each table. 

Stage lights slowly illuminate the stage in front of us, drawing everyone’s attention forward. And the woman standing in the center of the stage keeps it there. 

She’s facing away from the crowd, standing in shiny high heels, her hands placed on her hips. Long, fishnet gloves adorn her arms, along with matching stockings. Bright, ginger colored curls wave down to her shoulders, too perfect looking to be real. 

She wears a blinding black and silver sequined dress that resembles a style women would wear in the nineteen twenties. It shimmers in the harsh lights shining on the stage as she begins slowly moving to the soft beat beginning to play from the live band sitting discreetly off to the corner of the stage. 

“Good evening, ladies and gentlemen,” a voice booms out from the speakers overhead as my eyes jump towards the movement off to the other side of the stage. 

Poe Dameron walks slowly out in front of the closed curtain, drink in one hand, an old fashioned microphone in the other. 

“We’ve got a great night in store for you,” he grins, almost tauntingly as he drags the words it slowly. “Now, I’ve noticed we have a lot of new faces in here,” he smiles, his eyes quickly flashing to me before looking back out over the rest of the crowd, “as well as some familiar ones, so I’m not gonna yammer on too long tonight. I want you all to sit back, enjoy the service, the scenery… and most of all, enjoy the show.” 

The band suddenly picks up the beat, the beginnings of a song starting to play as the woman standing behind Poe turns around, much to the particular enjoyment of a few men in the crowd as she shows off her intricately painted face, again, looking too perfectly crafted to be real. 

To my shock, and everyone else’s pleasure, the woman begins slinking around Poe, slowly tracing her hands around his body as he begins singing.

His voice sounds much like it does when he talks. Teasing, captivating, exciting. 

I am frozen as I watch him, moving his body to the beat of the music as the woman continues to dance suggestively around him. But it’s almost… playful. As if they were two friends mocking each other. 

The words of the song seem random and jumbled together to me, because I feel as if my mind has gone numb as I watch the show before me, but also trying to keep my eyes away from the image of this man sexily singing and moving to the sensual beat of the music. 

The woman at one point lays herself down on one of the tables in the front row, stretching her legs up above her, gaining cheers from every man in the audience, and even a few of the women. 

I just politely turn my eyes down to the ground, until they eventually travel back up to the stage. 

I don’t know if the song is supposed to be saying anything specific, but from what I can gather, it’s mostly empty words, typical of what you’d hear from a performance like this. It’s a song about sex, drugs, drinking… the kind of stuff that gets everyone excited in a place like this, I suppose. 

Just when I think the song has reached its climax, Poe and the woman step aside as the music suddenly blares through the room, the heavy curtain yanking up as more lights explode onto the stage, lighting up the elaborate set decorating the impossibly large platform. 

Tons of dancers appear, as if out of thin air, painting the stage with a glittering, colorful display of long legs and revealing costumes.

The cheers from the crowd are barely heard over the music now swimming through the room. The stage has been decorated to look like some kind of Arabian kingdom, with rich colored scarves and drapes hanging from the ceiling. This is further enforced by the main attraction, which are the dancers, both male and female. 

The women are clothed in black underwear and bras that are draped in strings of shiny gold beads that brush against their skin as they move. They wear matching gold headpieces that look as if they’d been crafted for royalty.

Some of them brandish long, silver swords, as if they were about to duel, but it’s soon obvious that these are just visual props to add to the effect of the show. I’m not sure how sexy a lot of people would find a sword fight. 

The men are shirtless, their skin glistening under the lights as they move their perfectly toned bodies along to the music, gazing teasingly out at the audience, gaining many whistles from the ladies whenever they move their hips a particular way.

Rey is right. The object, or rather objects, of the show are pretty raunchy. But there’s something about the vision of it all, how detailed and exciting it is. There isn’t a place on the stage where there isn’t any movement, and the dancers perform in such a way, without flaw, as if they’ve been doing it their entire lives. It must have taken years of rehearsal to do the things they are doing so perfectly, not a single one of them late, or awkward, or off beat.

It’s a spectacular thing to watch. 

Just when I think they’re about to hit the finale, the bright stage lights darken to a neon blue, and the dancers prance off the stage as new ones glide in to take their place, various dark clothed people moving gracefully in the background to change the sets.

“Isn’t this amazing?” Rey asks as I gaze disbelievingly at the display before me. 

In less than thirty seconds, the stage looks nothing like it did before, having smoothly transitioned into a hospital setting, with scandalously dressed nurses and doctors now captivating our attention. 

Small white lights ignite on the back wall of the stage, and shiny poles have slowly risen from various points in the platform, which a few of the dancers begin to take advantage of, making me blush slightly and want to look away. 

The lead dancer, a dark haired woman dressed in a glittering white nurse’s dress and shimmering gloves and stockings, takes center stage, somehow expertly landing high kicks and splits with a pair of high heels on. 

Her makeup and hair almost makes her look like a vampire, but I suppose that’s the point if she’s supposed to be taking blood. I’m not really an expert on what turns people on, but I won’t judge. 

Again, despite all the role playing not really being my… _kink_… I do find myself getting lost in the excitement of it all. Maybe that’s just because I’ve never seen a live show before. __

_ _When I hear Poe and the woman singing again, my eyes are immediately torn away from the stage and up to the right hand balcony, that’s lit up by a spotlight. _ _

_ _I don’t know how he got up there so fast, but it certainly makes him look even more grand than he did before. _ _

_ _I watch him sing over to the woman, who I guess is at the balcony on the other side. From the way they perform with each other, it would appear the two of them have been doing this for a long time. _ _

_ _He reaches his hand out, performing as if he’s longing to touch the woman across the room from him, I guess going along with the lyrics to the song. _ _

_ _I don’t notice at first, because he’s so far away. It takes a moment of me trying to study his face, trying to figure out why his face, out of a million others I’ve seen in my lifetime, is affecting me so much tonight. _ _

_ _That's when I notice he’s staring directly at me. _ _

_ _I don’t believe it at first. How would he even be able to pick me out in this gigantic room? _ _

_ _He has to know where I am though. He picked out our seats. _ _

_ _I stare back at him, his gaze narrowing seriously, though the rest of him is still in performance mode, putting on an exaggerated show for everyone else in the room. But his eyes are looking at me. _ _

_ _And before I can linger on it for more than ten seconds, it’s over. _ _

_ _After having been so distracted, I didn’t even realize they’d changed the entire set of the stage once again. _ _

_ _The stage is now decorated with lavish beds and couches, coffee tables and lamps. Like a five star hotel room. And of course, the dancers that come out are all dressed as French maids. _ _

_ _The crowd seems to have gotten more and more energized by now, and it’s as if this third group of dancers have finally sent everyone into overdrive. The alcohol mixed with the natural excitement in the air nearly causes half the audience to leap out of their seats and try to clamber onto the stage themselves. But from the corner of my eye, I see a couple of burly looking security guards in those same black suits the guys at the door had on. _ _

_ _They don’t have to restrain anyone just yet, but they look prepared. _ _

_ _After performing a few more suggestive tricks for us engaged audience members, the song begins to come to a close. Sparkly blue curtains pull closed in front of the lavish display, followed by the heavy red drape that had initially hidden the impressive arena. _ _

_ _Poe and the woman are back, center stage, as if they’d never left, finishing off the thrilling presentation with one final, exuberant note. _ _

_ _The theater doesn’t let the silence last for any longer than a quarter of a second, erupting into thunderous cheers and applause. _ _

_ _The girls all scream their appreciation, especially Kaydel, who sounds as if she’d just witnessed her first rock concert._ _

_ _“Wasn’t that amazing?” Rey laughs, placing her hand on my arm. _ _

_ _I nod, finding myself unable to choose the right words, and suddenly feeling very uncomfortable in the many layers I’d chosen to dress in to protect against the winter air. _ _

_ _I hadn’t even realized Jess had apparently ordered a few drinks for us, four of which are now empty glasses, leaving one left untouched, sitting in front of me. _ _

_ _“Jess, promise me we can come back here every weekend!” Kay exclaims as we all stand up from the table, the lights slowly glowing back on, lighting the grand room once again. _ _

_ _“Well, the membership card allows you two nights a week for free, so you’d better sign up,” Jess informs her. _ _

_ _“And we’re not even done yet,” Rose speaks, glancing toward yet another set of doors on the far right side of the room, where a good number of people are heading now. “What always goes best with drinking?” _ _

_ _“What?” Kay asks curiously as Jess leads the way over to the next part of this elaborate club. _ _

_ _I try to get a glance at what we’re in for now, looking over heads as we all carefully step around the crowded array of tables, chairs, and people. _ _

_ _“Gambling, of course,” Rey answers as we approach the now open set of doors. _ _

_ _There are no men in black suits here at this door. I guess they figured, if you’ve made it this far, you’re not trying to sneak in for free. _ _

_ _Whenever I think of a casino, the image and sound of a million flashing and beeping machines all packed together like sardines, comes to mind. Not really my ideal concept of a good time. So I’m already bracing myself before we enter the dimly lit room. _ _

_ _However, once we pass through the open doors into the next room, it’s more quiet than the theater was. _ _

_ _There are no machines, no gaudy neon lights blinking, no sound of change entering or exiting metal contraptions. Instead, there are a series of large tables set up all along the large room, with various groups of people hovering anxiously around. _ _

_ _There is poker, blackjack, roulette, dice games, and probably tons of other things I don’t know about. The men and women eagerly standing around the games are all holding drinks in their hand as they do, seemingly being given refills by the scantily clad servers who were roaming the previous room._ _

_ _The only noise is a dull chatter, the sound of dice hitting tables, and the occasional cheer of triumph or strew of cursing from the visitors hoping to win big. _ _

_ _On the right side of the room, seemingly miles away, there is a large table, where a woman is standing in front of a computer and a wall of large, gold keys hung up behind her. _ _

_ _I step closer, trying to get a better look at what’s going on as a man and woman go up to the lady behind the counter. _ _

_ _The man is dressed in a navy blue business suit, and the woman in a long, shiny silver evening gown, and is standing in such a way that makes me believe she’s had one too many drinks. _ _

_ _They discuss something briefly with the lady, before handing her a large wade of cash. The woman behind the counter then turns and grabs one of the fancy keys off its hook. _ _

_ _She turns back to hand the man the key, which he snatches up excitedly and pulls the giddy looking woman along to a row of elevators lined along the wall. _ _

_ _I realize these must lead to hotel rooms. _ _

_ _“Now, this way, my dear,” Jess announces, grabbing Kaydel’s arm and steering her over to a blackjack table just opening up. “We’re gonna teach you how to win.”_ _

_ _“Jess, I have no money!” Kaydel protests as she’s dragged off. _ _

_ _“You coming?” Rey asks me, about to follow after them. _ _

_ _Truthfully, I’m not really interested in any of the games. I can’t tell if it’s maybe because I’m tired and have had too much excitement for one night. Or maybe I’m just not in the mood to try and learn how to play a game where my money relies on how lucky I am. _ _

_ _“Maybe later,” I nod towards her absentmindedly. “I’m gonna look around a little bit.” _ _

_ _She gives me an understanding nod before running over to join the other girls, who are now getting set up with the help of the dealer standing at the table. _ _

_ _My eyes slowly glance around the room, scanning through each group of people. I’m sure Poe Dameron would want to be taking a break after the show. There’s no way he’d be down here. _ _

_ _I need to stop with this… _ _

_ _My eyes wander over to where Rose is standing, looking as if she’s trying not to stare at me. I honestly forgot she was still here._ _

_ _“Aren’t you going too?” I ask, nodding over to the blackjack table the others have surrounded. She shakes her head, making her hair jostle back and forth. _ _

_ _“I’m not really much for gambling,” she tells me. _ _

_ _“Yeah, me either,” I agree, turning back to look throughout the populous game room. _ _

_ _Movement at the other side of the room catches my eye, and I realize that there is a huge, royal blue curtain making up the entire wall of the right side of the room. I see a group of very chatty young women speaking with, what looks like a hostess. _ _

_ _The hostess smiles and nods briefly, having a look at the ID cards the women show her, before leading them over to the center of the wall and pulling back the large curtain to usher them through. _ _

_ _In the few seconds the curtain is pulled back, I’m able to make out, what looks like a duplicate of this room, except darker, with different colored light, and large tables and booths filling the floor rather than games tables._ _

_ _“That’s the restaurant,” Rose explains, following my intrigued gaze. _ _

_ _I nod slowly instead of answering, suddenly curious at this new addition. _ _

_ _“Did you… want to go in?” Rose asks me, no doubt unsure of my odd behavior. _ _

_ _“Uh… no, I’m good. We should probably just wait for the others.” _ _

_ _A small look of disappointment crosses her face, but she nods in agreement. _ _

_ _I can’t tell if she knows why I don’t want to be alone with her for too long. If she didn’t feel the way she did, I’d have no problem hanging out with her in a fancy restaurant. But I do everything I can to make sure she doesn’t get the wrong idea. _ _

_ _Maybe I should just tell her that I know she likes me and I don’t feel the same way. But I don’t want our friendship to be any more awkward than it already is. And how would the other girls feel about it? Of course they would want to console her. Would that mean I’d lose all of them? _ _

_ _“Well, um… what do you want to do?” Rose asks. _ _

_ _I’m about to answer that we should probably just chill and watch the girls try to win big, but my mouth freezes, the words jolting to a stop in my throat. _ _

_ _Rose tries to rapidly follow my gaze, because I probably look as if I’ve just spotted something fantastic across the room. I force myself out of the sudden daze, quickly trying to make my voice sound natural as I answer her. _ _

_ _“Uh… we can just… stay here and watch,” I stutter, trying my best not to sound awkward, my eyes still focused on where I’ve just spotted Poe Dameron. He’s talking with the tall, dark haired man again, acting as if they’re trading hilarious stories. _ _

_ _“Ok, sure,” Rose replies, and I can tell from her tone that I wasn’t able to cover up my ridiculous outburst. _ _

_ _I tear my eyes away, hearing Poe’s very identifiable laugh ringing out among the sea of voices in the room, while I try to concentrate on whatever’s happening at the blackjack table Rey and the others are at. But as much as I train my eyes on the emerald colored table and the colorful chips and crisp white cards covering it, I couldn’t tell you what was going on if you tried to force me. _ _

_ _All I can focus on is the melodious laughter from across the room as I wonder why I want so much to know whatever it is he’s finding so funny. _ _

_ _The sound of Jessika suddenly squealing with joy snaps me back to where I’m trying to focus my attention, and my eyes quickly scan across the blackjack table to try and figure out what had happened. _ _

_ _“That’s not fair!” Kaydel exclaims. “Jess, you’re too good at guessing.” _ _

_ _“I’m a better player, Kay, you’re never going to beat me with zero experience.” _ _

_ _“Jess, you’ve hardly played three games all your life,” Rey informs her. “That hardly makes you a seasoned professional.” _ _

_ _“Well then how in the hell am I doing so good? Come on, give me anyone, I can take ‘em all.” _ _

_ _“Having fun, ladies?” _ _

_ _I nearly jump out of my skin after hearing the voice from behind me. Poe is standing beside me, as if he’d simply teleported across the room. _ _

_ _“Jess thinks she can take on the whole club and win it all,” Rey smiles as I try to cease my gawking. _ _

_ _“Oh, well you never know,” Poe shrugs. “Happens more often than you’d think, a rookie could wipe out a whole league of regular players. It all depends on how fate is feeling on any given day.” _ _

_ _He turns toward Rose and I, and I feel my face go hot as my gaze jumps down to the ground after meeting with his dark brown eyes. _ _

_ _“I hope you enjoyed the show,” he continues, a slight hint of question in his tone, as if he wished to hear a response. _ _

_ _“Amazing as always,” Rose assures him. “I still can’t fathom how those dancers are able to… move like that.” _ _

_ _“It takes practice,” he tells her as I keep my eyes trained on the brown, green, and purple pattern designing the carpeted floor. “And a hell of a lot of mistakes, but everyone here gives it a hundred and ten percent every time, that I can guarantee.” _ _

_ _“Well, it pays off,” Rey says, stepping up next to us as I look over at her. “Do you think I could be in one of your shows, Poe?” she asks, looking down at herself and fluffing her dress about. _ _

_ _“Rey!” Rose gasps, beginning to blush. _ _

_ _“Anything for her to quit her retail job,” Jess calls over to us. _ _

_ _“Rey, I think you’d be just lovely in the show, if you so desired,” Poe nods respectfully. Rey rolls her eyes a bit, but smiles in return. _ _

_ _Before I can have time to carefully move my gaze back to the floor, Poe turns to me, catching my gaze with his eyes, making my breath freeze in my chest. _ _

_ _“Do you play?” he asks, his voice dripping into that odd aura of seriousness he doesn’t usually seem to use. _ _

_ _It takes me a couple seconds before I remember he’s talking to me. _ _

_ _“Wh… what?” I stammer like a fool. A small grin curls around his lips._ _

_ _“Blackjack,” he clarifies. “Have you played before?” _ _

_ _“Um, no,” I shake my head, feeling butterflies in my stomach as he moves closer to me._ _

_ _I feel myself tense as his hand reaches out towards me. His palm touches against my back, his arm looped around my waist as he leads me over towards an empty game table._ _

_ _“Well, no better time to learn then,” he says quietly to me as Rose and Rey follow us over. _ _

_ _I stare down at the green fabric table below me as Poe’s hand drops away from my lower back and he nods the dealer away before me beginning to set up the cards. _ _

_ _“Blackjack always starts with making bets,” he begins as he gets everything set up. “I suppose most games do.” _ _

_ _I watch his hands as they flow effortlessly about the cards, as if he does this in his sleep. _ _

_ _His hands look surprisingly rough when I stare at them more closely. More like the hands of a mechanic than the hands of a high end club owner. Maybe the flashy rings were distracting me from actually looking before._ _

_ _But now, as I slowly graze my eyes up from his hands, along his arms, and all the way to his face, I notice that, this close at least, he appears more rough looking than I previously determined. As if he’s been painted over with a smooth, Vegas style persona covering up something else. _ _

_ _“We’ll play a practice round, so no real money’s on the table,” he assures me, but the anxious expression he no doubt caught on my face has nothing to do with the worry of losing money. _ _

_ _“Can you do that?” I hear Rose ask. _ _

_ _“Of course he can,” Rey whispers back to her. _ _

_ _“Now, all the cards count their face value,” Poe speaks as he turns to face me, and I force myself to try and pay attention to what he’s saying, rather than just watching him move. “That means four is four, six is six, and so on.”_ _

_ _My eyes follow his hand as he snatches up a queen of diamonds card from the table and holds it up to me. _ _

_ _“Picture cards count as ten…” _ _

_ _He snatches up an ace and holds it up._ _

_ _“... aces are one, or eleven.” _ _

_ _I nod, my heart beginning to beat rapidly in my chest, which happens often when I’m trying to learn something very confusing in a short amount of time. _ _

_ _“To start off, the dealer will deal two cards to the player, and then two to themself. One is face up, the other is face down…” _ _

_ _I try to understand. I really do. But being in a very crowded room where the volume seems to have amplified about ten notches, combined with being only inches away from Poe, has my mind swirling to a point where I can hardly process anything. _ _

_ _I catch bits and pieces about splitting or standing and something called double down, but I couldn’t wrap my head around anything, even if I tried. _ _

_ _Rose is probably understanding more than me. That is most likely because she’s actually paying attention, whereas all I’m focused on is trying to decide whether it’s polite to stare at Poe while he’s talking, or if I should look at what he’s doing. _ _

_ _At one point, he tries to get me to actually start playing, but it’s at this point I realize I still don’t know a single thing about this game. _ _

_ _And I don’t even have to struggle through it for more than two seconds before Poe notices. _ _

_ _All he does is smile at me in amusement as I stare blankly down at the cards, and then back up to him. _ _

_ _“It’s not really everyone’s game,” he tells me. “If you’re not much of a gambling man, that’s probably a blessing.” _ _

_ _“Yeah, so don’t come here then,” Jess says as she and Kaydel walk up to us. “You’ll get addicted real quick.” _ _

_ _“That is how it goes,” Poe admits, re-shuffling the cards. I gaze in wonder as his hands expertly split the deck, using his thumbs to draw the corners up before letting them rain down, then pushing them together again._ _

_ _I humorously try to picture Poe teaching me how to do this trick, but this causes my blood to heat when I imagine his rough looking hands touching against mine, his arms wrapped around me from behind while he tries instructing me on how to properly shuffle a deck of cards. _ _

_ _I need to get out of here. _ _

_ _“Will you be staying the night?”_ _

_ _My head snaps over to look at Poe as my stomach jumps to my throat. _ _

_ _“Unfortunately, no,” Rey answers. “We really have to one night though, it must be incredible.” _ _

_ _“We have the finest accommodations in town,” Poe assures her as my brief heart attack quickly melts away. “And you’d get a discounted price since you have your ID card.” _ _

_ _“Yeah, well, Finn can’t stay in any area with more than ten people for long periods of time, so I don’t know how that will work,” Jess speaks loudly. _ _

_ _I feel as if I’d love nothing more than to shrink down into a hole and never be seen again as Poe chuckles at Jess’ comment. _ _

_ _“Is that so?” Poe asks with laughter. I don’t answer, instead trying to focus on not blushing out of my mind. “I do remember you mentioning that. Well, we’re just going to have to fix that, won’t we?” _ _

_ _I stare over at him, my mouth trying to form words as I see one of the men in black suits walking briskly over to us. _ _

_ _Poe Dameron probably thinks I’m a mute at this point. _ _

_ _“Mr. Dameron,” the black suited man speaks in a firm tone, his eyes narrowed. _ _

_ _“Something amiss, Mr. Jacobs?” Poe asks him, his grin lessening just a bit. _ _

_ _The girls all go back to the blackjack table, trying to figure out all the new tricks Poe had just displayed to us. _ _

_ _“We have a problem,” the man speaks discreetly while I do my best to pretend I’m not listening._ _

_ _Poe’s playful expression now melts away completely. In an almost frightening way, he snaps into a deadly grave demeanor. Something about it sends a chill through me. _ _

_ _“Show me where,” he instructs, his voice soft, yet serious. The man nods, before leading him away across the room. _ _

_ _I glance back at the girls, who all seem distracted by the game. Without saying anything, my feet start moving across the carpeted floor, walking briskly in the direction Poe and the man had rushed off to. _ _

_ _I’m somehow able to slide past the thick crowd of people engaged in whatever game is in front of them while I try to keep my eyes trained on Poe. I don’t know why I want to follow them, or what I think is about to happen. It’s none of my business, but a part of me feels… worried. _ _

_ _They stop at a game table almost up against the wall of the opposite side of the room. Right away, I can tell things are getting out of hand. _ _

_ _Everyone has almost cleared away from this area, aside from two very rowdy looking men. Both look as if they stepped out of a 1930s gangster movie with their fancy suits and fedoras, and I can’t tell if they’re drunk, or just being assholes._ _

_ _One of the server girls is trying to take their drink trays away, but they keep grabbing at her. _ _

_ _Poe doesn’t have to view the scene for two seconds before he’s marching over to them. _ _

_ _“Gentlemen,” he announces in a dominating tone. “I believe it’s time for you to leave.” _ _

_ _One of them, a beady, elvish looking guy with clean cut black facial hair and a mean looking face, grins eagerly at Poe, practically jumping over towards him. _ _

_ _“Poe Dameron,” he chuckles, looking almost eager as he stares him down. “Nice little place you’ve got yourself here…”_ _

_ _“You may leave on your own, or I can escort you to the door,” Poe stands his ground, not even flinching an inch as the man stalks closer to him. “Your choice, gentlemen,” he glances over to the other, burlier looking guy who's twirling a cigar in his hand. “I also believe I made it quite clear from the various number of signs in each of these rooms, that smoking is prohibited.” _ _

_ _“We liked the show,” the beady looking man continues, ignoring Poe’s warnings. “I want to check out the hotel.”_ _

_ _“I’m afraid that’s not going to be possible tonight,” Poe continues in his cool, yet commanding voice. _ _

_ _“Come on, Mr. Dameron,” the man pushes, “you always give your guests a good deal. How much can I get for the cute little French maid?” _ _

_ _It’s quiet for a brief moment. Standing where I am, I can’t see Poe’s expression, but I can practically feel it crackle through the air. _ _

_ _“This isn’t some whore house, sir,” Poe speaks, and I swear I can hear his voice tremble in anger for just a short second. “The dancers are here to dance and the servers are here to serve you drinks. That is all. You want a hooker, you go to any of the seedy bars down the next block.” _ _

_ _The burly man cracks a sly grin as he slowly rises from the seat at the game table, roughly shoving the very nervous looking server girl out of the way. _ _

_ _“Of course,” the man standing in front of Poe laughs. “You’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?” _ _

_ _“Go ahead and take a quick fifteen minutes,” Poe speaks toward the girl, who quickly nods before rushing off. _ _

_ _She brushes past me, not seeming to even notice that I’m just standing here, watching all of this. _ _

_ _It grows silent again as Poe simply stands and stares at the two men, his hands folded calmly in front of him. _ _

_ _“I believe I’ve made myself clear,” he tells them. “You have five seconds to make your choice, or it will be made for you.” _ _

_ _The man in front of him just shakes his head, still smiling. _ _

_ _“That’s alright,” he says, reaching behind him to grab his coat off the chair. “We were just leaving.” _ _

_ _“See ya around, Mr. Dameron,” the burly man chuckles, still chewing on his cigar as he begins to stroll over toward the door. _ _

_ _The other man shrugs his coat over his expensive suit, never taking his eyes off Poe. _ _

_ _As soon as it looks like he’s about to follow his buddy, he roughly grabs ahold of Poe’s arm, leaning in close to him and staring daggers into his eyes. _ _

_ _“It’s not over yet, Dameron,” he hisses venomously. “Jones isn’t done with you yet.” _ _

_ _Poe doesn’t respond. He just waits until the man lets go of his arm and walks off. _ _

_ _Poe gestures over to the man in the black suit, who’s been standing guard a couple feet away. _ _

_ _“Make sure they aren’t sticking around,” he instructs, gaining a nod from the man before he marches off to follow the two men._ _


	3. Chapter 3

Poe stands there alone for a moment, reaching to run a hand through his hair, his shoulders moving as he sighs heavily. 

To my bewilderment, I almost start to move forward, wanting to ask him if everything is alright, ask him what that man had meant. As if I could do anything to help. 

Instead, as soon as he begins to turn around, I leap back into the crowd of people now returning to their games after having backed off for a bit on account of the rowdy men. 

Poe walks a couple of tables down, taking only a couple of breaths before he becomes unshaken once again. 

“Hey,” a deep voice calls to him. 

He turns around to see that tall dark haired man once again approaching him while I try to blend myself in with a group of people playing at the craps table, ignoring the weird looks they give me. 

Now able to get a closer look, I can see this man has an incredibly brooding look about him. His expression gives off the feeling that he probably hasn’t smiled very often in his life, if at all. 

“What was that all about?” he asks, nodding toward where the scene had just taken place. 

“Nothing,” Poe answers him. “Just a couple of customers who had too much to drink. It’s taken care of.” 

“You don’t get that look on your face from two drunken customers,” the tall man insists, his eyes narrowing down at Poe in concern. “What’s wrong?” 

“Kylo, I would tell you if something were wrong,” Poe tells him in a hushed tone, his voice growing less and less animated. “There’s no need to bring up all this trouble again just because-”

“But there is trouble,” the man, Kylo, interrupts him. “You know Jones isn’t happy with you. He’s gonna find some way to try and get even with you, we knew this.” 

“There’s nothing to get even with,” Poe protests. “I did nothing to him. If he wants to start something, that’s his own business, but I won’t have any part of it.” 

“As if you’d have a choice,” Kylo shakes his head. “You know you can’t get the police involved.” 

I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I suddenly feel as if I probably shouldn’t be listening. 

“Let’s not talk about this now,” Poe decides. “We have no reason to worry yet. When we do, we can discuss.” 

The man named Kylo doesn’t seem very satisfied with this, but he nods his head in acceptance anyway. 

“It looks like you’ll have yet another booming weekend,” he changes the subject, glancing around the filled room. “You’re the hottest club in the city, Poe.” 

“I told you,” Poe grins, turning around to follow Kylo’s gaze, while I turn my head away in hopes that he won’t see me. “I know people, Kylo, that’s the difference between me and you.” 

“Funny,” the man replies sarcastically. “Let’s not forget who funds a good chunk of this establishment.” 

“Ah, everyone knows how important you are, Mr. Ren,” Poe acknowledges, putting his hand on his shoulder and guiding him off to a semi empty game table. “How long has it been since you’ve played poker?”

“I don’t know, a week?” Kylo responds. “But before you try to engage me into helping you lose money, I have some things I want to ask you.”

“And what would those be, my friend?” Poe questions as he begins shuffling a deck of cards. 

“I saw you talking to that group of young ladies earlier tonight…” 

Poe looks up at him, his eyes widened in surprise and his hands freezing. 

“Yes,” he answers slowly, sounding unsure. 

“Who’s the little one with the brown hair and the big smile?” 

Now Poe looks as if he’s just seen the most exciting thing in the world. 

“Kylo Ren, are you-”

“Yeah yeah, calm yourself. I’d just like to know her name.” 

“You, who’s never been interested in a single woman in the entire ten years I’ve known him-”

“Her name, Mr. Dameron,” he repeats, though it sounds as if he might be trying not to grin. 

“And if I give you her name, will you talk to her?” Poe presses, leaning forward eagerly as if he’s trying to make a proposition. “Tonight?”

“I’m not asking for her name just to keep it in my mind.” 

“You saw her when she came in? With her little group?”

“Yes,” Kylo sighs in exasperation. 

“How long did you watch her?” Poe grins teasingly. 

“If you won’t tell me her name, I’ll go find someone who will-”

“That would be a failure of a mission I’m afraid. She’s one who sticks to her group, not one of the socialites. In fact, I’m probably the only one here who knows who she is, aside from her friends.” 

Kylo’s face riddles with confusion. 

“Then what is she doing back here? Don’t the kids usually stay up front in the club?”

“Well, these _kids_ were curious about the rest of the establishment,” Poe explains, going back to setting up the game at the table. “So after they came in a couple times, I signed them up for membership cards. I don’t discriminate who gets to come back here based on social status, you know that.” __

_ _“I do, but normal people are never interested in coming back here. Too… elite, wouldn’t you say?”_ _

_ _“Well, then perhaps she’s not exactly normal people,” Poe offers back. “I’m guessing that’s part of why she caught your eye.” _ _

_ _I’m positive they’re talking about us. I feel even more like a jerk, dressed the way I am and coming to this part of the club where mostly high status people lounge at. Looking around again, I realize there really is no one else here who isn’t wearing a fine sit or an expensive evening gown._ _

_ _“Her name is Rey Kenobi,” Poe speaks, making my heart drop down to the bottom of my stomach. _ _

_ _Kylo nods, seeming to carefully take in her name, maybe even rolling it around in his head a few times. _ _

_ _“I see,” he finally replies. “You know her well?”_ _

_ _“Like I said, she’s come in a decent amount of times,” he nods. “Very lovely young woman. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her without that smile on her face.” _ _

_ _Kylo doesn’t answer, instead going back to that pondering expression, as if he’s trying to figure out an impossible puzzle. _ _

_ _“And as for your unasked question,” Poe continues, “I think she’d be absolutely flattered by your admiration.” _ _

_ _I don’t stay to hear the rest, choosing instead to quickly propel myself across the room, back to where the girls are. _ _

_ _Irritation buzzes through me as I march past the crowd, my confusion at what had taken place just moments earlier replaced by a strange spike of fury at what I had just heard seconds ago. _ _

_ _I don’t want Kylo Ren talking with Rey. I can’t even imagine Rey’s kind, light hearted aura coinciding with that man’s obviously darker lifestyle. Something about him rubs me the wrong way, and I’d like very much for all of us to leave right now. _ _

_ _“I think Jess cheats,” I hear Kaydel teasing as I approach the table. _ _

_ _“Kay, you can’t say ‘cheats’ in a place like this,” Jess informs her. “That’s as bad as saying the word ‘bomb’ on an airplane.”_ _

_ _“Are we almost ready to go?” I ask Rey as the others continue to argue. _ _

_ _“Done already?” she laughs. “If I’d have known better, I’d say you were enjoying yourself earlier.” _ _

_ _“I was… I mean, it was fine, but… it’s late, can’t we go home and get ready for bed now?” _ _

_ _Rey just laughs, shaking her head and throwing her arms around me. _ _

_ _“Oh, you are not a weekend person, Finn Storm.” _ _

_ _“Guilty as charged,” I agree. “Are they almost done?” _ _

_ _“Yes, love,” she giggles. “Ladies, Finn has had enough for one night!” _ _

_ _“Well that’s great, because I’ve had enough of losing,” Kaydel sighs in relief. “I’m lucky we weren’t betting real money, or else I’d be close to broke.” _ _

_ _“We work retail jobs, we’re not the type to bet real money,” Jess announces as she grabs her purse and we all start heading toward the exit. “We’re lucky Poe even allows us to play.” _ _

_ _I glance back to see if I can see Poe from here, but he must still be at the poker table with Kylo Ren. _ _

_ _“So, when are we coming back?” Kaydel asks as we head back into the showroom. It’s quite a bit emptier since everyone moved into the game room. _ _

_ _“Well, you have to come here a few times if you want to sign up for the ID card. Poe got it for all of us for a discounted price since we’re not exactly as rich as everyone else here.” _ _

_ _“Do you think you’ll come back?” Rose asks me as we move toward the doors leading back into the bar. _ _

_ _“Hell no,” Jess answers, leading the way and strolling through the dance club. I wince slightly as the loud music suddenly fills the air. “I think he could barely handle tonight, did you see how pale he started to look before we’d even sat down for the show?”_ _

_ _“I don’t know, he seemed pretty red in the face to me,” Rey smiles, making me blush yet again. _ _

_ _“What do you mean?” Rose asks her. _ _

_ _“Well, either way, I don’t think Finn would waste a dime on a membership card to any club in town, even if it is the finest one,” Jess asserts as they all run off to grab their coats._ _

_ _I’m almost about to protest that that’s not true, until I realize that it is, of course, completely true. Why would I spend money to sign up for something I hate doing? _ _

_ _“What did Rey mean you were blushing?” Roe asks. “Were you blushing? Why?”_ _

_ _“You did have fun though, right?” Rey asks me as she and the others run back to us. _ _

_ _“I think he was too nervous to have fun,” Jess drawls as we exit the glamorous club, stepping out once again into the freezing winter air. _ _

_ _“That’s not true,” I deny. “It was… it’s a really nice place. It’s just, not my thing.” _ _

_ _“Rey, what did you mean Finn was blushing?” Rose continues, running to catch up with us. _ _

_ _“Yeah, but you wouldn’t go back though,” Jess continues as we begin to walk down the street, back to the direction of Takodana. _ _

_ _“Oh my god, Jess, why do you care so much?” Rey groans in disbelief. “He had a good time, leave it alone.” _ _

_ _I decide to let the conversation naturally shift on to something else instead of answering Jess’ question. I’m not really sure of the answer myself._ _


	4. Chapter 4

I always work Saturdays and Sundays. One of the lovely benefits of working a retail job. However, since I don’t really do anything on the weekends, there's really no reason for me to complain about going to work and getting paid. 

Since I don’t have a single known family member, I don’t really get any financial help. The boarding house knows my situation and allows me to stay for a very discounted fee as long as I also go to school and work on the weekends. The result is, I don’t have much of a social life, which most people would find unbearable, but I find manageable. As long as I always keep myself busy, I don’t feel like I’m going insane or anything. Even though working retail will try it’s best to drive you out of your mind. 

I work at a home furnishing store called The Comfort Zone, which is about as cringe inducing as it sounds. There’s never a weekend when it’s not busy, yet it somehow gets the worst reviews out of any store in the shopping center, and the only reason I was hired is because so many people quit every week that they hardly have enough people to keep the store running each day. 

I close tonight, so I don’t have to go in until one, so I spend the morning finishing up on homework with Rose. Then Rey, Kaydel, and I all gather into our one car and head to the shopping center. Rey works at a cafe just a few stores down from where I work, called Daisy, and Kaydel works at a yogurt shop there called YOLO. Which is a perfect fit for her in every aspect. 

“Have fun, suckers,” Kaydel merrily calls out to us, skipping off to her very empty looking shop. Winter time means not too many customers clamoring for frozen yogurt. 

“Yeah yeah, have fun standing around and doing nothing for eight hours, Kay,” Rey replies back, heading off to the cafe that seems to be close to having a line of people waiting outside the door. 

“You know I will!” 

She’s right. It may be boring to stand and do nothing for an entire work day, but anyone who works retail knows that’s better than dealing with customers. 

Of course, we’re as busy as ever when I go in. I usually have to work at the register until around eight o’clock when the crowd starts thinning out. Then I can go about the store cleaning up and making sure there’s no broken glass on the floor. Or making sure customers aren’t trying to eat the wax fruit displays, which happens more often than it should. 

Usually, as I’m standing there ringing up items, wrapping them up, and bagging them, I can zone out until my shift is over. It’s mostly thinking about school, but today, it’s about the club. 

I’ve never been a material person, but something about the extravagant night club has been able to stick in my mind all throughout last night and throughout today, which is probably why I wasn't able to get much homework done and Rose was staring at me as if I had an animal sitting on my head that I refused to take off. 

I try to focus on recalling the show, all those dancers in their glittery, revealing costumes, the grand ballrooms that made up the rooms of the club, the glimpses I’d caught of the romantically lit restaurant.

This line of thinking then of course leads me to ponder the episode with the two disorderly men he’d thrown out and Kylo Ren, and how upset, almost horrified Poe had seemed for just a moment. 

It only takes me about two hours of ritually scanning pillows and table displays before I’ve decided I definitely want to know what was going on last night, and if I ever see Poe Dameron again, I’d definitely ask him if everything is alright. Just to be sure. 

_And where in the hell would you ever see Poe Dameron again, Finn? I’m pretty sure he doesn’t spend his free time in Takodana.___

_ _“Finn!” _ _

_ _I turn around to see Jeff, one of the managers, waving his hand to me, gesturing me over to him. _ _

_ _I ignore the very offended looking customer waiting to go next in line, and rush over to him, knowing that whatever it is, it is most likely life and death to the poor man. He has a lot on his hands on the weekends. _ _

_ _“I need you to help a bunch of customers waiting in rugs,” he directs me. “Corey called out today, and we only have Desiree on the floor, but she’s helping that lady redecorating her house…”_ _

_ _“I’m on it,” I nod assuredly to him. He sighs in relief before rushing off again. _ _

_ _“Thanks, kid!” he hollars back his appreciation. _ _

_ _I really don’t think I’ve ever said anything else to Jeff aside from “I’m on it” and “you’re welcome”. _ _

_ _

_ _By the time I’m on the last break of my shift, I decide it might be worth going back to Club Dameron, just once more. I mean, I’m never going to be a regular there, so it would be polite to go back and say goodbye to Poe properly, since he was so welcoming and has been beyond generous to Rey and the others. I doubt he noticed, but I feel a bit guilty about just rushing out so rudely last night. Even though it might have been justified. _ _

_ _The Comfort Zone closes at ten o’clock, like most stores in the mall, which means we all usually don’t get out until about ten thirty. When I get out, Rey and Kaydel are already waiting in the car, as usual. They have a little less clean up in their workplaces, so they’re usually out at ten. _ _

_ _“How was it?” Rey asks as I climb into the back, relieved as always to get off my feet. “Anyone crazy?”_ _

_ _“No, we were pretty smooth today,” I answer as I buckle up and she starts the car. “One lady wanting to look at rugs was a little weird, but no one pushy.” _ _

_ _“Well lucky you,” she sighs in frustration. “I had a great one today. Wanna hear?”_ _

_ _“It’s pretty good,” Kaydel giggles. _ _

_ _“Do tell,” I implore her, always in the mood to hear a good psycho customer story. _ _

_ _“Well, some guy came in, ordering practically everything on the menu, even the stuff we hadn’t prepared yet, of course. So naturally, it takes a bit of damn time for us to get all these things for him, then he starts ranting and raving that he’s in a big hurry and needs to get back to work. Who orders a ten course lunch when they know they have to be back at work?!” _ _

_ _“It’s a classic,” I acknowledge as Kaydel laughs. _ _

_ _It’s probably better to just ask Rey about going back to the club. I know she won’t laugh her ass off at my sudden change of heart, and she’ll understand I really am telling the truth when I say I just want to thank Poe for his hospitality. Whereas Jess or Kay won’t let me live it down that I might secretly be a party animal._ _

_ _

_ _“Can I ask you something?” I start the conversation as Rey rapidly sucks down her microwaved macaroni. We always take our lunch behind the buildings on our breaks whenever they’re at the same time. But she only has ten minutes left since I just got here. _ _

_ _“No,” she teases. _ _

_ _“Did you plan on… going back to the club at all? Anytime soon?” _ _

_ _She whips her head around to look at me, putting a hand over her mouth as she tries not to smile and spit out all her macaroni. _ _

_ _“Look, we didn’t get a chance to say thank you to Poe before we left, and I just wanted to-”_ _

_ _“You wanted to go all the way back just to say thank you to some guy?” she questions doubtfully. _ _

_ _“Well he’s not really some guy, he’s the owner of-”_ _

_ _“You liked it, didn’t you?” _ _

_ _I shake my head in exasperation, knowing now is the time I’ll have to explain myself. _ _

_ _“I thought it was much better than all the other clubs we’ve been to, but… ”_ _

_ _She waits for me to continue my thought, but I just now realize that I really don’t have anything bad to say about the place. _ _

_ _“Look, it’s a fun atmosphere, they’ve got good drinks, they play decent music, and there’s interesting people, are you happy?” _ _

_ _“Very,” she grins. “Oh, Finn, I’m so glad that you-”_ _

_ _“I’m not saying I want to go every weekend, but I was just wondering if you and I could maybe just go down and hang out one night. Maybe like, on a Wednesday, as a halfway through the week relaxer, or something, I don’t know.”_ _

_ _“That sounds amazing, but they’re closed on Wednesdays and Sundays,” she informs me. “We could go tomorrow night, though. I don’t think it would be too busy on a Monday.” _ _

_ _“Ok,” I nod, trying not to appear too eager at the sound of going back so soon. Lord, what is wrong with me? _ _

_ _“Sounds good?” she smiles._ _

_ _I return her warm grin, feeling strangely relieved. _ _

_ _“Sounds good.”_ _


	5. Chapter 5

All of my classes on Monday seem to be going by way slower than usual, even though I have most of my more interesting ones today. Nonetheless, Film Theory, Psychology, and Screenwriting all drag to no end. 

I practically sprint all the way back to the boarding house, even though it’s easily only a fifteen minute walk if you’re going at a normal pace, and I know Rey still has another class before she can head back. And of course, this was the one day out of the semester when I actually wasn’t given any homework, so I have nothing to distract myself with while I wait for tonight. 

I try putting together an outfit that might be a little more suitable for such a high-end looking place, but as usual, all I come up with is jeans, a t-shirt, and a baseball cap and sweatshirt. It’s a good thing I don’t have to go on any job interviews any time soon.

“You seem antsy,” Rose notices as she comes down into the kitchen to find me eating an apple and staring at the clock on the oven. “Is everything ok?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I nod, hoping she doesn’t ask where I’m going tonight. 

“I heard you and Rey are going out,” she says as she opens up the fridge to grab the leftover pasta from last night. 

“Uh huh,” I nod again, hopefully giving off the vibe that there’s nothing interesting to talk about. 

“Sounds fun,” she sighs mindlessly, going to heat up the noodles. 

Now I feel a bit guilty, wondering if maybe she wanted us to invite her along. 

“Did you… are you busy…” I awkwardly try to ask, unsure of her reaction. 

She grins to herself before shaking her head. 

“No, it’s ok, I’m good,” she answers my unasked question. 

“Ok, I’m ready!” Rey calls as she hops down the stairs. 

“Have fun,” Rose offers as I hope up from the counter eagerly. 

“You too… I mean, have a good night,” I reply, cringing at my sudden inability to communicate like a human being. But Rose doesn’t say anything. 

Rey isn’t too dressed up either, to my relief. She just has on a pair of brown skinny jeans, some shiny black boots, and a maroon colored sweater with a light denim jacket. 

“You look nice,” I tell her as we head out the door. 

“Why thank you, you look very dashing,” she replies. “Dressing to impress anyone special?”

“Ok, I get it.”

“No, Finn, I’m just teasing. You know I think you always look great.”

“You know, this is a conversation we really shouldn’t have as much as we do.”

There’s only about two percent of the line there was on Friday night when we arrive at Club Dameron. It’s still lit up as if it were a Vegas show, but without the twenty minute wait. 

“Looks like this is the night to come,” I observe as we walk up to the men at the doorway who check our IDs. Rey hands them a hundred dollar bill and they both nod us in. “What happened to your membership card?” I ask as we walk up to the glass doors. 

“You can only use it once a month,” she explains as we enter the loud dance club. “Any other time, it’s fifty bucks for each person to get in.”

“Oh, shit. I’m sorry, I wouldn’t have asked to come if I knew we couldn’t get in for free, you didn’t have to spend your money.” 

“I already did,” she shrugs. “No use dwelling on it now. Want a drink? Or a dance?” 

She smiles laughingly at me as I decide to take the former option. 

It’s nice to just hang out with Rey. I really can’t remember the last time we did this since high school, back when we had hours of time on our hands. But it’s only nice in the way that it feels nostalgic. I’ve always loved talking to Rey, but it feels like we haven’t done it in so long, I can’t really tell her what’s on my mind and what I’ve been feeling so confused about since Friday night. 

“Is there another show?” I ask after we’ve finished our drinks.

“No, they only have the live shows on Fridays and Saturdays. I suppose they need to give those poor dancers a break, or they might snap their ankles. Have you wondered how they ever manage to dance around in those heels?” 

“I guess it takes a special talent,” I admit. I’m about to ask her where she thinks Poe might be, but I realize asking too much about him is kind of weird. I barely know the man. 

We decide to go back into the game room, because Rey decides she wants to try and teach me how to shoot at the craps table. 

“I only know what I know because I saw this movie once about a guy who moves to Chicago to play in the craps game,” she explains as we stand by and watch a group of people playing. “It’s all about betting, just like blackjack. You place bets by putting the chips on the pass line, right there,” she points as my eyes follow her gesture. 

“Now, I think the pass betters win if it’s seven or eleven-”

“What are pass betters?” I ask, already starting to feel confused. 

“I honestly have no idea, I’m just remembering the words they used in the movie.” 

“Uh huh. So you lose if it’s not seven or eleven?”

“No, you lose if it’s two or three,” she nods assertively. “And I think twelve. If it’s any other number, that number is the point.” 

“And if the shooter rolls a point in the comeout, he keeps rolling until he gets the same number, or a seven,” a voice from behind us speaks. 

I turn around to see Poe Dameron standing casually behind me, as if he’s been here for a while observing something incredibly interesting. 

He’s dressed in a brown colored suit this evening, a suit that looks about as flawless and exotic as the white one did, and his hands still flash with the same rings as before. 

“I’m surprised to see you back here so soon,” he greets as he steps closer, making me go rigid. His eyes meet mine, his brows narrowing slightly, as if he were trying to recall something. “Didn’t you say you can’t stick around crowded places too long?”

“No,” I answer quickly. “I mean… yes, but I didn’t say-”

“Jess may have been a little exaggerated when relaying that information,” Rey quickly rescues me. “Anyway, Finn remembered we kind of left in a hurry last night and didn’t get to properly thank our host.”

Poe’s gaze goes back to me, and I quickly look over his shoulder at a group of people playing poker at a table across the room. The only other group of people in here at the moment. 

It’s at that moment I notice Kylo Ren leaning up against the wall just across the way from us, his arms crossed over his chest as he seems to be staring intently at Rey. 

“It’s my pleasure to make your visit here as delightful as possible,” Poe replies. 

“Well, you certainly know your business,” Rey acknowledges, her eyes wandering to where mine were. Kylo smiles at her. 

“Are you staying the night yet?” Poe asks as Rey quickly turns back to him. 

“Oh, one night Poe, I promise,” she grins. “We actually have school tomorrow, so we should be going soon. We just came to have a drink and take in the atmosphere. It’s rather calming here on weeknights.” 

Poe looks for a moment as if he wants to ask something, but then just smiles back at her. 

“Well, have a safe trip back and have a good rest of your week,” he nods. 

“We plan to.” 

I expect him now to walk off, but he instead rests his hand lightly on my arm, practically sending a jolt of electricity through me. 

“May I talk with you for a moment?” he asks me quietly, his eyes looking eager as he begins stepping away already, pulling me along with him. 

Instead of trying to speak, I nod my head, my heart pounding rapidly as fear courses through me. 

“We’ll be just a minute,” he calls over to Rey. 

“Take your time,” she replies, looking off after us curiously.

_He knows. He knows I was listening in the other night.___

_ _I immediately start scripting out my explanation as he leads me over to an empty blackjack table. _ _

_ _He pulls a chair out for me before going to sit in the one next to it. _ _

_ _He looks up at me for a moment before giving a small laugh. _ _

_ _“Well, have a seat,” he insists, gesturing over to the empty chair._ _

_ _I snap myself out of whatever daze that stopped me from realizing I hadn’t even sat down yet, and carefully seat myself in the chair next to him, realizing that the two of us are incredibly close together, the side of my knee almost touching against his. _ _

_ _I shrink into myself as much as I can, not even wanting to know what would happen to me if I touched against him now. _ _

_ _“How do you like it?” he starts, leaning back against the table. _ _

_ _“I… how do I like what?”_ _

_ _“The club,” he chuckles. “Do you like it, are you having a good time?”_ _

_ _“Um… yeah,” I nod, now unsure of where this conversation is going. _ _

_ _“You don’t talk much, do you, Finn?” _ _

_ _Now that he brings it up, I realize I really don’t talk much, even to people I know. _ _

_ _“No,” I shake my head. _ _

_ _“Have you ever talked much?”_ _

_ _Hadn’t I? _ _

_ _“Uh… I think so…” _ _

_ _I gain the courage to look up at him, startling slightly at his very intense gaze. _ _

_ _“Why?” I question. _ _

_ _“Just curious,” he shrugs. “You just seem like someone who would have a lot to say. But anyway, back to the point.”_ _

_ _I feel myself tense again, ready for him to ask what in the hell I was doing listening to his conversation the other night. _ _

_ _“You know that I have all your friends signed up for the membership cards. Would you like one?”_ _

_ _I stare at him for a moment, waiting for him to continue on to what he really wanted to talk to me about, but he just sits there, waiting for my answer._ _

_ _“That… that’s it?” _ _

_ _“Uh, yeah, that’s it,” he laughs. “Well, that’s not it, I… I’d like to get to know you better. I wouldn’t mind it if you hung around more.” _ _

_ _“But you… you hardly know me…”_ _

_ _“Exactly. Look, normally it’s five hundred dollars, but I gave it to each of your friends for two hundred, since I know you’re all about the most honest, down to Earth bunch that hangs around here-”_ _

_ _“I really don’t think it would be very useful,” I quickly tell him. “I mean, I don’t really hang out in places like this. At all.” _ _

_ _“Is there anything I can say to make you change your mind about that?” _ _

_ _“Why do you want me to change my mind?” I ask before I can stop myself. _ _

_ _He smiles in response, looking as if he didn’t expect me to have all these questions about why he seems to want me here when he doesn’t even know who I am. _ _

_ _“I don’t know. Maybe because I talk so much, I like having people around who just listen. Promise me you’ll think about it.” _ _

_ _Not knowing how else to respond to this, I nod my head. _ _

_ _“Uh… sure.” _ _

_ _“Great,” he grins, standing up from the chair, causing me to follow suit. _ _

_ _Now is the part where we wish each other well and say good night. But instead, he steps toward me, so close that his face is only centimeters from mine. Briefly touching his hand against my wrist, he leans forward and kisses me on the cheek. _ _

_ _“Have a good night, Finn,” he says to me, brushing his hand along my wrist as he walks off. _ _

_ _I’m left standing there, trying to figure out what had just happened and attempting to remember how to properly function again. _ _

_ _My hand reaches up to touch against the side of my face, still feeling the sting of Poe Dameron’s lips, lingering like a ghost._ _

_ _Why had he done that? Does he do this to everyone? Does everyone feel like this after talking with him, after being near him? _ _

_ _I turn around to watch him leave, wondering if he’s really just going to walk off after all of that, but I’m immediately distracted by who Rey is suddenly talking with. _ _

_ _It seems Kylo Ren has taken this opportunity to finally talk with Rey alone. And whatever they’re discussing seems to be incredibly fascinating, because Rey won’t stop blushing. _ _

_ _He’s standing beside her, looking incredibly pleased with himself as he continues speaking to her, his voice too low for me to make out what he’s saying. He does look a little less intimidating now. He’s more relaxed, his eyes not looking as if he’s ready to murder someone, and even his clothes are slightly more casual. More like he’s just hanging out at a club and less like he’s a no nonsense business man._ _

_ _That still doesn’t allow me to trust him any further than I can throw him. _ _

_ _I quickly rush over to them, remembering the discussion I’d overheard between Poe and Kylo the other night when they were talking about Rey._ _

_ _Of course. Poe had taken me aside to give Kylo an opportunity to talk to her. That’s why our conversation had seemed so pointless and… distracting. _ _

_ _“We have to go,” I tell her, ignoring Kylo completely as I walk up to them. _ _

_ _Rey looks taken aback by my unusual pushiness, but she nods, turning back to Kylo and smiling brightly. _ _

_ _“Um… it was lovely talking with you, Kylo,” she tells him as she takes my hand, much to Kylo’s obvious distaste. _ _

_ _“Will you be back?” he asks her, his lightened demeanor suddenly returned to the predator-like aura that had shrouded him the other night when I first saw him. _ _

_ _“Uh… sometime, sure,” she blushes back. Why does she keep doing that? “Good night!” she calls to him as I pull her away, anger and embarrassment curling through me. _ _

_ _I march us through the empty theater, past the loud, music blasted dance club, and finally out into the street, where I can breathe a little easier. _ _

_ _“And what in the hell was that all about?” Rey asks as I let go of her hand and finally slow my pace ever so slightly. “One moment you’re begging me to go back, and then you want to rush out all of a sudden?” _ _

_ _I hate that I was ever remotely attracted to Poe Dameron. I hate that I was stupid enough to think he actually wanted to talk to me, not just give his buddy time to hit on my best friend. _ _

_ _“Finn, are you alright?” _ _

_ _He probably thought it was funny to flirt with me. Funny to see how much I’d blush whenever he looked at me. I was probably the big fucking joke of the night. _ _

_ _“Oh my God, Finn, slow down for a second-”_ _

_ _“I like you, Rey.” _ _

_ _She stops walking, and I follow suit, feeling as if I’m about to pass out. _ _

_ _She doesn’t look at me, instead staring down at her boots, her face looking pained with guilt. _ _

_ _“Finn…” _ _

_ _Great. Now, on top of feeling angry and embarrassed, I feel like an asshole. _ _

_ _“I love you, Finn,” she starts as I try to quickly think up an explanation. “But not like-”_ _

_ _“I know,” I nod in understanding. “I know… I don’t know why I just said that.” _ _

_ _I do know why I just said that. Because I’m confused, tired, and angry. _ _

_ _“I didn’t mean that,” I assure her as she looks up at me and grins sympathetically. “I’m so sorry, I don’t feel like that about you, Rey. At least I don’t think I do…” _ _

_ _“Finn, it’s ok,” she says, putting her hands on my shoulders and trying to snap me out of whatever frenzy I’ve somehow worked myself up into. “You’re my best friend… you’re practically my brother.”_ _

_ _“I know,” I repeat, nodding. “I’m sorry.” _ _

_ _She shakes her head. _ _

_ _“Don’t worry about. We’ll just call it a slight misunderstanding. Nothing to gossip about any further.” _ _

_ _I really do love her._ _

_ _“Anyway,” she continues as I take a deep breath while we continue walking, “I can’t be attracted to you in that way. Rose would have my head.” _ _

_ _I try not to roll my eyes as she laughs at her own joke. _ _

_ _“You know, you’ve really got to tell her you don’t feel the same way.” _ _

_ _“How?” I ask desperately. “She’s never said anything flat out. What if I misinterpreted something-”_ _

_ _“Come on Finn, we all know exactly how she feels. Telling you flat out is about the last thing she needs to do at this point.” _ _

_ _“But I never lead her on or anything… do I?” _ _

_ _“No, but you haven’t said anything about it either.” _ _

_ _“Well why don’t you tell her? You’re better at communicating nicely than I am.” _ _

_ _“Oh, imagine how that conversation would go,” she huffs. “Hi Rose. Listen, my best friend Finn, who we all know you adore, would like me to inform you that he does not reciprocate your affections. Now, where do you think we should have for dinner tonight?” _ _

_ _“Ok you’re right, that does sound pretty bad.” _ _

_ _“No shit.” _ _

_ _“Well what am I supposed to say?”_ _

_ _“I don’t know, but I wouldn’t wait until she decides to kiss you.” _ _

_ _“Do you think she would?” I ask nervously, shuddering at how awkwardly that would go down should it happen. _ _

_ _“I don’t know. So you need to man up and tell her you’re more into Poe Dameron than anyone else.” _ _

_ _I nearly fall over while stopping in my tracks. _ _

_ _“What?” I choke out, hardly able to believe that I heard her correctly. _ _

_ _“You get so nervous around him,” she laughs as she continues walking. “Believe me, I’ve known you for most of my life, and I’ve never seen you like that around anyone else before. You’re whole aura just jumps to tense in one second.” _ _

_ _“I don’t like him.” _ _

_ _“Yeah. Alright.” _ _

_ _“I don’t!” _ _

_ _“Well, of course as attractive and exciting as Poe Dameron is, that Kylo Ren is something else entirely.”_ _

_ _I groan internally. I don’t want to talk about Kylo Ren._ _

_ _“I’ve never seen him there before, but he said he saw me the other night. Lord, wasn’t he just… beautiful? I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone so handsome.”_ _

_ _“Mm,” I reply mindlessly. _ _

_ _“He told me I looked ‘enchanting’. Can you believe that? I mean who talks like that? It’s as if he wandered out of some eighteenth century romance novel…”_ _

_ _She goes on about all the heart pounding things Kylo Ren had said to her back at the club. I don’t want to ruin her fantasy, so I don’t tell her how I feel about him and that anything he said to her was probably bullshit just to get her into bed with him. Or whatever he wants. _ _

_ _All I can think about is going home and going to bed, then going to school in the morning and forgetting this whole night. _ _

_ _I think I’ve had enough of Club Dameron to last me the rest of my life._ _


	6. Chapter 6

It’s nearly two weeks before I see Poe Dameron again. And it’s not because I am anywhere remotely near the club. In fact, it’s in the last place I’d ever expect to run into him. 

Since Rey and I go to community college, I have to walk home after classes. The other girls usually have the car because they either work or go to school further away. On Fridays I only have one class in the morning, so I get to leave around eleven.

It rained last night, and now It’s one of those mornings where the sun feels like a million knives slicing through the crowds, making everything glow a million times brighter than it should. And unfortunately for me, I don’t have sunglasses. Just a baseball cap that doesn’t help much. 

The walk home is quite peaceful. No busy streets, not a lot of people. I go the long way back just to avoid tons of people. I go through a park, filled with pretty much nothing but empty fields. To anyone else, it’s rather dull and unattractive, but it’s heavenly to me, especially at night. 

After the park, I go through an empty street the rest of the way home, which sounds and looks like it would be a bad part of town, because it’s mostly all abandoned buildings and chain link fences. But there hasn’t been a single shady soul around in the two years I’ve been coming down this way. 

But this morning of all times, I have the living daylights nearly scared out of me when I see a figure rushing out from between buildings just a couple feet ahead of me. 

I step back for a moment, already trying to run through a million self defense moves that are possible before I even get a look at the person who had run out. 

My jaw drops as I stare at a very disheveled looking Poe Dameron, looking more like a less successful twin brother who happened to be wandering the streets all morning. 

He looks surprised to see me as well, but not embarrassed that I’ve seem to have caught him at a compromising time. 

“Poe?” I ask, unable to keep from sweeping my eyes over his jeans, beat up boots, and roughed up brown leather jacket. 

“Finn,” he smiles, running a hand through his dark hair, which is now hanging messily around his head, rather than slicked back to perfection as I usually see it. “I can’t say I expected to run into you down here.”

“Same here,” I reply slowly, still trying to comprehend that it really is him standing here where I walk home from class everyday. “Aren’t you… shouldn't you be…”

“At the club?” he grins, reaching up to throw a tan colored fedora onto his head. “Come on Finn, I don’t live there.” 

“Well, this doesn’t seem like the type of place you’d normally hang around,” I express as he walks towards me and I inadvertently take a step back. “What are you doing down here?” 

“Why?” he asks, noticing how I’m subtly backing away from him as he gets closer. “Hoping I came to see you?” 

“What?” I ask, feeling my blood turn fiery hot as I shove my shaking hands into my pockets.

“I walk around town sometimes. It’s nice to get out of the city. Are you hungry?” 

I really don’t want to answer his question with another question again, but he confuses me so much. He’s obviously off the clock, he has no reason to act all flirtatious, as if we’re still in the club. 

I almost want to tell him he doesn’t need to keep this persona up anymore.

“There’s a coffee shop just a few blocks from here,” Poe continues when I take too long to answer, beginning to walk back in the direction he came from. “Let’s go, I need a damn sandwich.”

Poe seems incredibly comfortable as we sit across from each other at the smallest table you could possibly imagine off to the side of a very tiny coffee shop currently occupied by no one aside from us and a woman typing madly on her computer while occasionally sipping from a skinny vanilla latte. 

I just ordered a mug of hot chocolate since I’ve never cared much for coffee, and Poe got himself a cappuccino with a large ham and cheese sandwich, which according to him is a very boring option, but something that will at least hold him over for the moment. 

I’m not even really sure why he asked me here, because we don’t do anything but sit for a solid ten minutes, only with him casually asking how Rey and Jess and everyone else is doing. To which I always reply with “good”, because I can’t think of anything else. 

Finally, after I’ve gotten through about twenty or so awkward sips of hot chocolate, Poe seems to want to get to whatever it is he wanted to talk about. 

“Do you always walk everywhere you go?” he begins, leaning back in his seat as if he were about to interview me. 

“Well, I don’t really go anywhere besides school and work,” I answer, trying not to stutter as I always seem to do around him. “School’s close enough to walk.”

“You go to the community college?”

“Yes.”

“Isn’t that a bit of a walk from where you live?” he asks in confusion. “You could just as easily walk from… you all live at the boarding house,” he quickly says after seeing my incredibly bewildered expression. “Rey told me.” 

Of course. What do I think he is, a stalker? 

I shuffle my seat awkwardly, looking out the large glass window into the morning sun glinting blindingly off the cars parked in the lot. 

“I prefer walking where there aren’t so many people,” I answer him. “Where I can just clear my head… I like walking.” 

He nods in consideration. 

“Peaceful,” he offers. “That sounds nice. Where do you work?”

“The Comfort Zone. In the mall. Rey and Kaydel work around there too.”

“The Comfort Zone? The furniture store?” 

“Um… yeah.” 

“Huh.” 

I can’t read his facial expression, but if I didn’t know any better, I’d say he found this bit of information amusing.

“Do you like it?” 

“Well, it’s a retail job,” I reply. “So, not really.”

“Then why work there?”

I can’t help but feel an initial wave of defensiveness, but then I remember someone like Poe Dameron has probably never had to work a shitty job in his life and wouldn’t understand the life of… well, someone like me. 

“I don’t exactly have a slew of great options,” I tell him, unable to keep an edge of bitterness out of my tone. “And I need the money if I want to keep living at the house.” 

His expression of hilarity begins to somber, to the point where his eyes darken too much. The look that flickers across his face frightens me for a moment as he nods his head, staring down at his crossed arms leaning against the white table. 

“I understand,” he laments, his voice matching his eyes. 

I want to ask him what he is thinking about. I want to ask him about his life instead of telling him all about mine. I hardly know anything about him. He seems eager enough asking me all of this, but something underneath it all feels… sad. And I can’t begin to imagine why that would be, since sad is the last emotion I would have used to describe Poe Dameron. 

“Do you like school?” he continues as I sit out my opportunity to question him. 

“It’s alright.” Truthfully, I don’t think much about school.

He stirs the thin spoon through his cappuccino mindlessly. 

“What are you studying?” 

“Nothing in particular, I’m just… taking some film classes.”

“Oh,” he raises his eyebrows, a grin spreading over his face once more. “Am I speaking with the next Martin Scorcese?” 

“No,” I blush, feeling a small smile crawl across my lips. “I was kind of interested in screenwriting, or editing… I don’t really know yet.”

I stare down at the table, tracing circles around the random patterns in the tile of the table with my thumb as Poe takes another swig of coffee. 

“Are you going anywhere after community college? Like to film school or something?” 

That’s a question I’ve wondered to myself for a good couple of years. The truth is, I have no clue what my future holds, and I’ve been trying to figure it out ever since I turned eighteen. 

I try to find the words to explain, but end up just shrugging. I don’t know how to handle the millions of stresses I have on my mind, let alone how to share them with Poe Dameron. 

Want to ask him why in the world all of this is so interesting to him. Why someone like him, who must run into a hundred interesting people every day of his life, would want to know the details of me, the most boring person to ever walk Earth. 

“Done?” he asks, nodding toward my nearly empty hot chocolate. I nod my head as he signals the waiter over to give us the check. 

I’m perfectly willing to pay for my share, but he sweeps it up and slides his credit card in before I get the chance to even look at the total. 

“What are you doing tonight?” he asks me as the waiter scurries off to run the credit card through. 

“Tonight… just, homework I guess.” 

He nods once, narrowing his eyes. 

“And then…”

“And then sleep. I have work tomorrow morning.” 

“Can you stop by the club tonight?” he asks without even taking a minute to consider what I just told him. 

“I really don’t have enough time…”

Actually, I’ll probably have hours of time. 

“Just for an hour or so,” he assures me as the waiter brings the credit card back. “I can let the security know, you won’t have to pay-”

“I can’t,” I reiterate as I stand up, anxious to leave before he somehow convinces me to forgo my plans of doing nothing tonight. Honestly I just think I’m too nervous to endure going back there another night. 

“Alright, when are you free?” he asks, following me as I stand up and begin heading towards the door. 

“I’m not sure,” I answer, stepping out into the crisp air. “It’s hard to know how much homework I’ll have, and what my hours are for work every weekend…”

I try not to stare as Poe suddenly flicks on a lighter to light a cigarette once we’re outside, but he obviously notices my gawking since I trail off mid sentence. 

“Nasty habit, I know,” he admits, shaking his head in shame. “I try not to do it too often anymore, but I crack every once in a while.”

I just nod, not really knowing what to say. I’m definitely not a fan of the aroma of cigarette smoke. 

“I think it’s time I just cut to the chase,” he speaks, stepping in front of me, holding the cigarette aside after having a couple puffs from it. 

He looks right into my eyes, and I startle a bit at first from the intensity. 

“I like you, Finn. I like you a lot. And I want to see more of you. I think maybe you might like me too.”

I don’t know what I’m supposed to say. In a way, I’m not surprised by his words. It was almost as if some unposted agreement had taken place between us. He’s always been completely aware of my attraction, just as I’ve always been aware of his pointed flirting. 

“I’d like to be with you, Finn,” he tells me, his hand closing around mine. I don’t have an instinct to jerk away, as I thought I might. His eyes seem to smirk as they notice my reaction. “Would you like that?”

My breath comes out in a sharp gasp as I quickly try to clear my head and stay focused instead of falling to the ground. 

“Why?” I manage out, amazed that my voice remembers how to work amidst the panic shooting through me right now. 

“Because you’re a good man,” he answers without hesitation. “I may not know you that well, but I can tell that much. I need more people like you in my life.” 

I feel a pleasant warmness begin to spread through me as he begins slowly circling his thumb against the top of my hand. His eyes stare at me hungrily, as if he’s restraining himself from… from doing what?

Suddenly I don’t mind the smell of the cigarette smoke so much anymore. 

“You did come here to see me,” I assert as I try to keep my gaze anywhere but on him. 

“I did.” 

I look back into his eyes, my heart skipping wildly as he seems to be promising me something with his desire-filled stare.

“Finn,” he whispers, his voice compelling me to pay close attention to only him. I feel myself leaning closer, my eyes trailing to his waiting lips… 

I jump back, taking a small gasp of air, as if I’d been underwater. 

Poe stands there, looking satisfied with my reaction. 

“I… thanks for breakfast,” I blurt out before turning around and practically sprinting off down the street. 

I go for about five minutes, leaping through the groups of people walking the sidewalks who probably think I’m a maniac, before I realize that that wasn’t really breakfast, so I sounded like a complete idiot, and I just ran away from a man who admitted he was just as attracted to me as I am attracted to him. 

_What in the world is wrong with me?!___


	7. Chapter 7

Days pass and I refuse to let my mind linger on my last interaction with Poe. If I do, I feel embarrassed and confused all over again. I can’t believe I made such a fool of myself in front of him time and time again. It’s a wonder I was ever able to have a coherent conversation with the man. And even so, the more I’ve thought about it, I don’t believe we ever even had a real conversation, at least one that I participated greatly in. 

So I go on day by day incredibly focused on not thinking about it. Unfortunately for me, there’s never much for me to do when I’m not working or in school, so the times I’m lounging about the house or in my room trying to get homework done leaves a lot of room for me to accidentally start thinking about Poe Dameron again. 

One Monday night, when I’m attempting to lose myself in writing and researching for my psychology paper for the fourth night in a row, I decide I need a break before my brain cells begin to off themselves. 

Usually when I’m feeling like this, I walk over to the park I walk through to get to school. It’s my favorite place to be at night, since it’s absolutely vacant, and has a beautiful view of a very bright and lit up Canto Bight if you find the perfect spot. But tonight, I’m more in the mood for just walking. 

The stroll is almost trance-like, which probably isn’t wise when walking around alone at night, but when you’re trying very hard to keep your mind clear of any specific thoughts, it becomes difficult to really focus on anything else aside from whatever it is you’re trying not to think about.

This is probably why I end up standing outside Club Dameron, as if whatever autopilot my brain was on had decided to lead me here. 

It’s a Thursday night, so not much is happening, at least not as much as usual. And before I can stop myself, or even process what I’m doing, I’m walking forward, up through the line until I’m handing one of the black suited security guards fifty bucks to let me inside.

My brain doesn’t have time to think through how rash of an idea this is. I really don’t have much walking around money with the income I get, but at this point, rationality is not something that is likely to come to mind. 

I’m sure I look like a lost child as soon as I enter. I’m not sure what to do since I don’t even know why I came in here in the first place. All I can do is stand here, looking around at the various people either dancing or drinking. Not much of either group, since most people looking to spend a night in this part of the club wouldn’t be up to it on a week night. 

I suddenly feel very self conscious when I realize I’m here alone and I have no idea how to handle myself in a place like this without looking to Jessika or Rey for guidance. 

My hands curl into fists as I quickly walk forward, ducking my head as a couple people turn to glance at me from the bar. I’m about to make my way to the door leading into the theater before I remember I can’t get in there without one of those identification cards. So I decide to just head back to the bar and have a drink instead. 

Sitting here alone with a glass of wine (because I honestly didn’t know what else to order), I’m reminded why I don’t come to places like this whenever I’m trying to relax and clear my mind. Instead of feeling the rattling beat of the music thumping through the air and using it and the alcohol to forget all of my problems, as most do, I’m instead wishing I could somehow shrink in on myself, while also looking over my shoulder to see if anyone is coming nearer. I nearly leap out of my seat when a couple of men sit down at the counter beside me, and they’re easily a good five feet away. So instead of calming my nerves, they seem to have gone into full panic mode. I was foolish to expect anything else, I suppose. 

After a while, I’m just staring into the puddle of grape colored liquid in the small fancy glass beneath me, knowing that I had come in here hoping Poe would be… waiting for me, I guess. 

I try not to cringe at how truly pathetic all of this has turned me. 

“We’ll get the cards, it’s no good arguin’ with security,” I hear one of the men at the counter speaking as my ears drift away from the music and begin to focus in on their conversation. “Jones said not to start anything just yet. He just wants information.”

I look over to my left to see that these two men are dressed an awful lot like the two men from the other night who had gotten thrown out. Only instead of a short, elf looking one and a bodybuilder, one is incredibly lanky with stringy blonde hair tucked under his fedora, and the other classically handsome, as if he belongs in a clothing commercial rather than in the gangster-like attire he’s in now. 

“I don’t get it,” the lanky one says, shaking his head as he glances around the room. “If Jones has enough on Dameron, why doesn't he just come over here himself? ‘Stead of makin’ us do all the dirty work.” 

“Because this is going to be big,” the good looking man answers him, continuing to stare straight ahead at the wall of bottles behind the bar. “Dameron fucked up, he needs to pay. It ain’t just gonna get takin’ care of in one night.” 

I feel my heart start beating a little faster as I try to work out what in the hell these people are talking about.

“So what do we do now?” the lanky one shrugs, looking much like how I feel about being here. “I’d say we’ve been through enough for the night. Can’t we get the fuck outta here now-”

The good looking man turns to face him, lowering his voice to the point where I can no longer hear. 

As if on instinct, I quickly stand up from my seat, my drink all but forgotten at this point, as I walk over around to the edge of the bar. 

I lean casually up against the counter, taking out my phone and pretending to focus on that while I strain my ears to hear what the two men are saying. 

“... so just stick to the plan, and Jones will have no reason to beat both our asses,” the man is finishing saying. 

“This guy must have really fucked up to piss Jones off so bad,” the lanky man states as I turn slightly more toward them to hear better, still keeping my eyes on my phone. 

“Yeah, you weren’t here when it happened,” the other man shakes his head, looking as if he’s remembering something in particular. “Don’t ask about it, it’ll just get Jones all pissed again.”

“I wasn’t planning on it. Though I would like to be filled in whenever we’re goin’ after someone.” 

“Maybe he hasn’t quite decided what he even wants to do yet. It’s gonna take a while for him to figure out the proper plan…”

I freeze as the man’s eyes raise up and stare directly into mine. 

My heart stops for a brief second when I realize I’ve taken my eyes off my phone and have gradually raised my attention to where the two men are sitting. 

Before either of them can say anything, I turn around and practically propel myself off in the other direction, definitely not helping ward off suspicion. 

The doors to the theater open in front of me, letting a couple people go through. My frightened stare glances up and just catches the face of Poe Dameron who’s standing near the entrance. 

I’m frozen once more, my heart racing as I quickly take my gaze off him, pretending I hadn’t seen him. 

Should I tell him? Are these men dangerous? Does he even know what’s going on, who these men are?

“Finn!”

I turn and run off across the club, past the bar and the dance floor, my eyes glued to the door, blocking out the sound of Poe’s voice calling to me and the feeling of the two men watching me from the bar. 

“Finn, wait!”

I shouldn’t have come here. I don’t belong in places like this. I don’t want any part of whatever is going on here. 

I run out into the icy cold winter air and start sprinting down the street, praying Poe won’t follow me out. 

I don’t turn around to see if he does. I don’t look anywhere but straight ahead until I get back to the house.


	8. Chapter 8

I decide not to tell Rey about what happened, knowing she’d probably tell me to either talk to Poe or maybe even call the police. Neither of which I really want to do. Whatever’s going on, I’m sure Poe and Kylo can handle it. They seemed to be aware of something being amiss the other night when they kicked the two goons out of the club. They don’t need me interfering in anything. 

This is the story I tell myself all throughout Friday in order to avoid stressing about it too much. I have my own life, I don’t need to get caught up in Poe’s business. I have to worry about school and work and what the hell I’m going to do with myself after I’ve finished college. 

After spending the entire day finalizing my psychology paper, I decide to go to the movies since everyone else usually goes out on Friday nights and I don’t really want to spend the night alone by myself in the house. Usually I’d ask Rey to go with me, but I’m still in a strange period of wanting to be alone with my thoughts, so I just tell her I’m going to walk around town for a bit then come back and go to bed since I have work in the morning.

“Are you sure?” she asks one more time as the other girls rush around, gathering all their things before heading out the door. “You look like you could use a night out. And I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages.” 

“It’s fine, have fun,” I tell her as Jess pulls her along. 

“Come on, Finn,” Rose says, stepping up next to me and looking at me with hopeful eyes. “You’ve hardly come out of your room the past two weeks. Going out to dinner can’t hurt.” 

“I’m just… not in the mood,” I try to explain, praying she won’t decide to stay behind with me. “Maybe next weekend.”

“It’s the Starlight Bar and Grill, Finn!” Kaydel pleads. “What are you doing that’s more exciting than that?” 

“Come on ladies, he said he didn’t want to go,” Jess hollars from the porch. “And we gotta get over there so we can get a good table, we’ll be waiting half an hour on a Friday night.” 

Rey gives me one last unsure glance before running off to the car with Jess and Kay. 

I try to give Rose an encouraging smile, expecting her to give it one last try to get me to go with them, or maybe insist she stay here and spend the evening with me. Instead, she stares at me with confusion, her eyes narrowing as if she were slightly suspicious of something. 

“I’ll see you tonight,” she says pointedly, not losing the odd look even as she exits out the front door. 

I always feel like a jerk whenever I don’t want to go out with the girls, but for some reason, I feel more guilty than ever now. I really need to tell Rose there’s nothing going on between us, because I sometimes get the feeling she’s… offended by something. 

I shake my head, closing my eyes as I lean up against the wall, embracing the quiet of the empty house. 

There are enough things on my mind without having to worry about making Rose Tico feel bad.

I take the bus to go to the theater since it’s a little far for walking. I don’t realize until I arrive there that I have no idea what’s even playing. So I just go into a show with a poster for a film I vaguely remember seeing the previews for on tv. It’s about different generations of the same family all going through hardships. It’s not very good.

But the worst part of sitting in the dark and watching this boring movie is the fact that Poe Dameron won’t politely remove himself from my thoughts. I didn’t even buy popcorn to help distract me from my confusing and guilt-ridden reality, which is supposed to be what going to the movies helps you with. 

Once the film graciously ends, it’s nearly ten pm, and I start to regret even going out at all tonight, knowing I should be in bed by now if I want to be up at seven am and off to work by seven thirty. 

The bus even has to be late, leaving me standing outside the theater acting a shivering mess in the thirty degree weather. 

It finally shows up ten minutes after the theater’s closed down, and I practically leap up onto the steps once the doors whoosh open. 

It’s empty, as I expected, apart from someone sitting towards the back beside the window. 

The severity of my luck is unreal. 

Poe looks just as he did the last time I saw him outside the club. Tired, remorseful, and older. His head is leaned up against the window, his eyes staring blankly out at the dark streets, his hands clasped loosely on his lap.

I stand at the front of the bus, gripping one of the poles as I stare in disbelief. The doors closing and the vehicle starting up again is what finally reminds me I should go sit down. 

I briefly wonder if I should pretend not to notice him once he turns to look my way, but of course I can’t break his gaze. 

He doesn’t smile this time. Just glances at the empty seat beside him, then back up to me, looking almost as if he’s wondering whether I’ll take it or not. 

I walk forward. 

“Is this seat taken?” I ask in a bad attempt at humor. He at least lets out a small smile. 

“Of course not.”

I sit down, careful to keep my body from touching against his. 

“What are you doing out here this time of night?” he asks, going back to staring out the window. 

I’m taken aback by his question. If anyone here has explaining to do, it’s him. 

“I could ask you the same thing,” I reply. “It’s a Friday night. The club should be pretty busy.” 

“Just wanted to go for a ride, I guess,” he answers as the bus starts moving forward. “Take a break. Don’t you have work tomorrow?” 

I can’t tell if he’s trying to tease me or not. I decide to play along nonetheless.

“Why do you care? It’s not really your business where I am at night, or what I’m doing tomorrow or any day of the week.”

“Because if you were mine, you wouldn’t be out alone at this time of night,” he responds curtly.

All that is heard is the gentle rumbling of the bus making its way down the road as I sit and stare at him, my previous shivering now completely forgotten as I feel that weird warm feeling buzz through my skin again.

I want to ask him what in the hell he means by that, but a different question comes out of my mouth.

“Where… where would I be?” 

“In my bed.” 

I straighten up and instinctively close my legs together as I feel a dull ache in my groin. _Does he do this to me on purpose?___

_ _“Did you follow me?” I ask, not quite sure what I want the answer to be. _ _

_ _“No,” he chuckles. “I’m not that good. Though I suppose I could have you followed, if I wanted to.” _ _

_ _He turns to look back to me, his tired eyes becoming slightly more lively. _ _

_ _“Why?” he asks, his face cracking into a broad grin. “Does that turn you on? Me stalking you?”_ _

_ _“No,” I react quickly. He just laughs, as if this were just a hilarious joke. _ _

_ _“You get annoyed with me pretty quickly, don’t you?” he questions, noticing my irritated expression. _ _

_ _“I just don’t see what’s so funny about...”_ _

_ _I stop talking. Poe doesn’t need to know about all the stress he’s causing me. _ _

_ _“What?” he presses, his leg moving so his knee touches mine. He moves closer, and I don’t move away, as much as I should probably want to. “Why are you always alone?” he suddenly changes the subject. “Surely there’s a lovely young lady for you to stroll around town with.”_ _

_ _I can tell from his tone he wants me to answer, he’s not just trying to pass an empty compliment. _ _

_ _“No,” I answer back simply. “I don’t need a woman to go out. I’m a grown man, I can go where I want, when I want to.”__

_ __ _

_ __ _

__ His eyes look almost smug as he takes in this information. _ _

_ _As I wait for his response, I’m silently trying to decipher if maybe he really did follow me all the way here. It seems as if he somehow knew I’d be getting on this bus. As if he’s been waiting for me, knowing I’d eventually come along. _ _

_ _“I’m tired of all this teasing, Finn,” he tells me, his eyes beginning to look longing and hungry, as they did that day outside the coffee shop. “You want me. And my offer still stands.” _ _

_ _“I’m not interested in a sex partner,” I tell him adamently. “And I’d appreciate it if you’d stop badgering me about the matter.”_ _

_ _“I don’t do that.”_ _

_ _“Do what?” I ask, my brow creasing in puzzlement. _ _

_ _“Fuck people I don’t care about. People I don’t want to be with.” _ _

_ _Before I can properly process what he’s telling me, I feel his hand reach over and rest warmly on my leg. _ _

_ _“I want you too, Finn,” he says, looking straight at me even as I continue to stare down at the ground, my hands fisted together nervously. “To be clear, I do very much want to make love to you, in every manner of the phrase, but I’d like to explore more with you as well.”_ _

_ _My mind scrambles for what to do. I don’t know how I’m supposed to respond, so my brain just goes to the next thing pulling at my curiosity._ _

_ _“You look sad,” I say, yearning to know why he seems so different, so… alone when he’s out here, in the real world. “You don’t… you don’t seem happy…”_ _

_ _“I was thinking the same thing about you,” he answers, his eyes still on me. _ _

_ _I decide to finally look up at him, at first outraged that he would think he has the right to assume anything about my happiness, but then realizing he’s not wrong. _ _

_ _We don’t say anything for a while. I just scoot a bit closer to him, and he keeps his hand on my thigh, which I don’t mind at all. _ _

_ _My stop comes too soon. I was hoping the bus might take the long way home, but of course, we’re here in only a little over five minutes. _ _

_ _I stand up awkwardly, feeling cold as Poe’s hand slips away from me. He stands up as well._ _

_ _“Can I walk you back to the boarding house?” he asks me as I step out into the aisle._ _

_ _“Um… no, that’s alright. Thank you.” _ _

_ _I’m worried. When will I see him again? Does he want to see me again? Are we… _ _

_ _“Can I have your… I mean, do you want my number?” I get out as quickly as possible before I have time to think about it. He smiles warmly, his dark brown eyes sparkling in a way that sends butterflies fluttering through my stomach. _ _

_ _“Yes. I do.”_ _

_ _

_ _My heart races in my chest as I run down the streets to the empty park. I graze along the grassy fields, unable to keep myself from smiling, laughing giddily as I raise my hands in the air, now inviting the cold air, feeling it curl around me refreshingly as my chest fills with an excitement I haven’t felt since I was a kid. _ _

_ _Standing up on the hill and looking out at the golden lights illuminating Canto Bight, I feel as if I could scream in joy. _ _

_ _For the first time in a long time, I don’t feel worried about anything. In this moment at least, I somehow know that everything is going to turn out ok. _ _

_ _I stay here for a long while, taking in the breathtaking view of the city, feeling my stomach do somersaults. Here, by myself, out of sight from everyone in the world, I allow myself to embrace every thought, every desire that’s been aching inside me ever since I first laid eyes on Poe. I don’t feel ashamed or awkward, at least not in these few moments alone, gazing out at the gleaming world miles away from me. _ _

_ _I finally tell myself it’s ok. Just for tonight._ _

_ _

_ _It’s very late by the time I get home. I had to text Rey to reassure her I hadn’t been kidnapped when they had all gotten home to find me not there. I honestly had forgotten all about them. I stay out in the park for over an hour, wishing I could stay there all night. I don’t even care about work anymore._ _

_ _Everyone seems to have gone to bed when I get home, except for Kaydel, who is dozing on the couch watching tv. _ _

_ _I go straight up to my room to get ready for a shower before I go to bed, unable to get Poe’s face out of my head for even a second. But what a relief it is to welcome his presence in my mind now, not having to worry that I shouldn’t be thinking of him as much as I do. He had reassured me he thinks of me in the same way. Reassured me that I’m not crazy, that he isn’t just leading me on. I’ve never had a revelation more comforting. _ _

_ _But soon, as I’m standing in the small cubicle that serves as our shower, hot water flooding over me, with the sound of Poe’s voice still ringing in my ears, I become a little more excited than I would have preferred at the moment. _ _

_ _I’ve had sex only once in my lifetime, a fact even I’m surprised of. Other than that, I suppose I’ve had my moments of arousal every now and again, but certainly not like this. _ _

_ _I place one of my hands against the shower wall, breathing heavily as I reach my other hand down between my legs. I grip my hand around myself, closing my eyes._ _

_ _When focusing on Poe’s hand touching my leg, or remembering what he had said to me, and picturing what it would be like to put my hands on his body, it’s not hard for me to get myself adequately worked up. My hand moves up and down along my sensitive length, my breathing becoming heavier as my other palm pushes hard against the wall. _ _

_ _My teeth crush down on my lip as I feel my pleasure build, my stomach doing an excited flip as I imagine the feeling of Poe’s rough skin against mine, his lips touching my body. I think about how he had told me he wanted me in his bed, what he wanted to do to me… _ _

_ _My forehead connects against the tile wall as I reach my climax, spending myself all over the shower. _ _

_ _It’s now that I realize I do in fact share this facility with other people, and will have to thoroughly scrub down the shower if I am to ever feel completely un-guilty about this. I really don’t ever do this, so this worry had never come to mind before._ _

_ _I turn around, leaning my back against the cold wall as the water continues to pour over me, steam practically rising from my skin. I’ve always preferred the water to be close to scalding, otherwise I don’t feel entirely clean. But now I feel as if I’m nearly on fire._ _


	9. Chapter 9

Poe’s number has sat stagnant on my phone all weekend. All throughout my eight hour shifts, I have to refrain from checking my phone every second to see if he might have called or texted. I realize Saturday would probably be a pretty busy day for him, and Sunday is his day off, so he’d want to take time to himself, I suppose. Or maybe I was just too rash in assuming he’d immediately want to get in touch with me after I’d suggested we exchange phone numbers. 

Monday comes. Then Tuesday and Wednesday. Classes are nearly impossible to focus on. The wondrous feeling I’d had Friday night is starting to wear off by now, replaced by doubt and worry that I’d assumed too much, or that maybe Poe had forgotten about me, or simply changed his mind. 

After a while, Rey and Jessika have caught on.

“You’ve been staring anxiously at your phone for four days straight,” Jess says pointedly Wednesday night when she and Rey had come down for dessert and found me sitting at the counter, phone in hand, while I stare at Poe’s contact, wondering if I should man up and text or call him. “Come on, you got someone’s number, didn’t you?”

“You _must_ tell us,” Rey insists, sitting beside me and grabbing ahold of my arm pleadingly. “I’m your best friend, you can’t just not tell me when you’ve met someone!”__

_ _“Yeah, you of all people,” Jess agrees, grabbing the tub of pecan ice cream from the fridge. “Rey tells me the last time you were even interested in somebody was in high school. I was starting to think there would never be hope for you.” _ _

_Lord, just send him a text, Finn. If he didn’t want you to, he wouldn’t have agreed to get your number!_

_ _ _ _ _ _“Do you have a date?” Jess asks. “Please tell me you at least have a date. And please tell me it isn’t tonight, because we haven’t had any time to get you some new clothes.” _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Maybe it would be weird to text him. I’m the one who asked to give him my number, I’ll look like a psycho if I’m also the one to text him first. He should make the first move. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“At least give us a name, or some kind of a hint,” Rey begs as I continue to stare indecisively at my phone. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Nothing’s going on,” I promise them, turning off my phone and plopping it down on the counter. “I’m just making sure I didn’t miss any calls-”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“From who?!” Jess demands. “Aha! See, you’re blushing again, who is it?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Damn it. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“It’s not someone from school, is it?” Rey asks, her face twisting into intense concentration, as it normally does whenever she’d trying to figure out the answer to something. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“No.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“From work?” Jess questions, plopping two scoops of ice cream in a small glass bowl. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Nope.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Well, where else do you go?” Jess asks, sounding unconvinced. “Unless you met someone walking in that park you love so much.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _It’s quiet for a moment when Rey suddenly grows wide eyed. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Is it someone from the club?” she asks in an excited whisper. “Did you meet someone at the club?”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh my God, I bet it is!” Jess gasps, her ice cream completely forgotten now. “I’m telling you, that place seems to be matchmaking central.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Rey snaps her head toward her, her face going white as she tries to subtly shake her head in a way of telling Jess to stop talking. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“What?” I ask, seeing Rey’s face turn from white to red. She doesn’t answer me._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh come on Rey, he might as well know,” Jess sighs, grabbing a spoon and leaning up against the counter as she casually begins in on her dessert. “You said you’re gonna see him regularly, so you can’t keep it from him forever.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Now it’s my turn to look shocked as I turn myself to face her._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Rey!” I plead in exasperation. “Have you been seeing someone from the club?”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _She bites her lip as she continues blushing, unable to keep a very large smile off her face. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Um… well… yes. Kind of. Recently.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Rey, why didn’t you tell me! Who is it, how long have you been…” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I don’t finish my sentence when I remember who from Club Dameron had been interested in her. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I went out with Kylo Ren Friday night,” she admits, suddenly seeming very giddy. “I know I should have told you, but I didn’t want you to worry. And I didn’t even know if I would see him again, but… oh, Finn, he was such a gentlemen. He held my hand, he opened the door for me, and he even… he kissed me when he dropped me off.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _A part of me couldn’t be happier for my best friend. I know exactly the dizzying excitement she must be feeling. But the other, more reasonable side of me can only think about the club, the gangsters, and the weird feeling I had gotten from Kylo Ren. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“So… he was at the grill when you all went?” I question in confusion. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Well… no, he picked me up from there and took me to the city. To this amazingly gorgeous restaurant, with the most amazing food…”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Finn, this guy is crazy rich,” Jess tells me eagerly. “He pulled up in the hottest lamborghini you’ve ever seen, then got out looking like a million bucks. Makes sense, apparently he’s one of the main funders of the club.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Well that doesn’t exactly ease my worries. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“So it seems I’m not the only one keeping secrets,” I mutter, half to myself. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Yeah, well now that I’ve told you mine, you have to tell me yours,” Rey clarifies. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“So you’re going to see him again, you said?” I try to keep the conversation on her. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Nice try, enough about me, it’s your turn. Whose number do you have that you’re dying to hear from?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I sigh, leaning my elbows against the counter and burying my face in my hands. Now it’s my turn to start blushing again. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Poe Dameron,” I say through my hands. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _It’s a good thing I’ve shielded my face because the both of them practically jump on top of me._ _ _ _

“_The_ Poe Dameron?!” Jess questions, nearly hopping up and down. “Fuck, you want to talk about _rich…”_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Wait, how did it happen?” Rey asks, beaming as she pulls me from my personal hiding place. “Did you go back to the club, did he ask you out?”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _“No, we just… we happened to meet on the bus, and… I don’t know, it just went from there.” _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _“Finn, this is amazing!” Rey cheers, throwing her arms around me. “Do you realize we are both in the midst of finding true love?” _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _“Well, I don’t know,” I shake my head as she pulls away to look at me. “He hasn’t said anything to me since then, and it’s been almost a week. I think maybe he might have found someone else by now.” _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _“Oh, don’t be ridiculous,” Rey denies. "He would never do that."_ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _“He doesn’t seem like an asshole,” Jess agrees. “Though you never know with those kinds of people. They love to have their cake and eat it too.”_ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _“He’ll call you,” Rey assures me, sending Jess a quick glare. “He’s probably just busy, you know how crazy things can get over there. And don’t think I didn’t notice him flirting with you at the club. He’s definitely into you.” _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _As embarrassing as I thought it would be, it’s nice to have Rey’s encouragement. I know she’d never lie to me. Except I suppose for the fact that she now has a secret boyfriend._ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _I don’t bring up any of my worries. Not tonight, anyway. It’s nice to just have this moment with my friends, getting excited about our crushes as if we were back in grade school. It’s a rather nice distraction. _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Hey. It’s Finn. How are you?_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _When I first send it, I feel pretty confident about it. Then when I sit there and stare at it after it’s been sent, I feel sick. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I get a text back in class Friday morning, barely after I'd put my phone back down. My pencil drops to the table and the screenwriting lesson is temporarily put on hold as I snatch my phone out of my backpack. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Everything’s fabulous. Class this morning?_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I hadn’t texted him more than five minutes ago. I’m very encouraged by this at first, but then I realize it’s Friday morning, so he probably doesn’t have much else to do other than answer my text. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Yes. But just one._

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I leave my phone out on the table, keeping my eyes glued to the screen and only turning back to the lecture for a couple seconds at most. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He answers immediately. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Interesting…_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Crap. He’s really going to make me do all of this. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I take a deep breath before typing the next question. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I’m free the rest of the day. Are you?_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I quickly turn my phone screen down after hitting send, not wanting to see his answer, or the fact that I really just sent that. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I throw myself back into the lecture on scene setting, busying myself with jotting down notes and pretending I’m thoroughly taking all of this in. It thankfully takes a bit of stress away, at least until it’s time for us to pack up our things and head out. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I tentatively reach for my phone and turn it on to see the one new message. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I am. Mall?_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Based on that vague suggestion, I assume he wants to meet at the outlet mall a few blocks from here. Right now, I guess. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Ok.___


	10. Chapter 10

I sit on top of one of the picnic tables facing the parking lot just outside the entrance to the Galaxy Outlets, a place I don’t think I’ve been since high school whenever Rey and I wanted to go to one of the food places here. I’ve never been much of a shopper. 

I constantly glance at my phone, practically counting every minute, wondering if I’m too early, or maybe he meant a different mall. I really should have asked for clarification, but I didn’t want to sound like a fool.

It’s only been six minutes since I’ve been here, but I’m already tapping my foot anxiously against the bench, turning my head this way and that around the parking lot, wondering what kind of car Poe would drive, or what he’ll be wearing. Maybe he’s looking for me too and we just haven’t seen each other. 

I really should have asked more questions. 

I wrap my arms around myself against the chilly morning air, wondering if maybe I should call Rey. She’d know what I should do. Or she’ll tell me I’m being crazy and that he’s going to show up any second now. 

It’s foggy again, the sun trying to break through between the clouds, still leaving everything darkened. I’ve always preferred the winter, probably because there’s less people out when there’s no sun. 

Just when I start to consider getting out my homework while I’m waiting so I don’t look like a moron sitting here and looking around nervously, I turn my head to see a figure stepping out from between two of the shops in the mall.

I grin to myself in relief as Poe glances around the parking lot, holding a nearly empty cup of coffee and wearing a pair of sunglasses, even though the sun is hardly a thought in this weather.

I hop down from the table and run over to him as his eyes finally land on me. 

“I didn’t know you were already here,” I say as I approach him. 

He reaches his hand toward me, casually pulling me closer to him before kissing me briskly on the cheek. 

“I know, I’m sorry, the line in the Starbucks was out the door,” he shakes his head as I try not to collapse onto my knees in surprise. “I would have gotten you something, but I think the lady with her two kids behind me in line might have attacked if I’d taken too long ordering.” 

“That’s alright,” I smile bashfully as he finishes off the coffee as if he hadn’t drinken anything in ages.

He looks the same. Tired, scruffy, unshaven, and unpolished, still with that same brown leather jacket. I realize I might like him better like this. 

“Let’s go before the real crowds start to come,” he says, grabbing ahold of my hand and pulling me along toward the mall, tossing his empty cup into the trash bin. 

“What are we looking for?” I ask curiously as he hurries off at a pace a bit quicker than mine. 

“Nothing in particular,” he shrugs as I nearly run to keep up. “Sometimes I just like to look. Gives me ideas.”

“What, for the club?” I question as we turn a corner and head for a clothing store. 

“Sure. But maybe ideas for myself as well. I gotta keep looking hot if I want to keep hosting every elitist in the city.” 

If that’s the case, I wouldn’t think he’d be shopping at an outlet mall for his clothes, but what do I know?

We head into some kind of trendy male clothing store that I’ve never been in before. Poe immediately starts looking through shoes while I stand behind him, not really knowing what would interest me. 

“How about these?” he asks me, holding up a pair of boots that certainly look more his style than mine. 

“Those would be nice,” I nod. “Are you going to try them on?” 

“No, I mean for you,” he laughs. “You’re always in the same shoes everytime I see you, I was thinking you’d maybe want some new ones.” 

I stare down at my beat up old converse that indeed look as if they’ve seen better days. They’re a solid shade of grey rather than the crisp white they started out as. Has Poe really been noticing my shoes every time we’ve met? 

“Well… I don’t know, I like these,” I tell him. “I’ve had them for…”

“For about ten years, it looks like,” he grins. “Come on, I’ll get you some shoes.” 

“Poe, you really don’t have to-”

“Don’t be silly, I’ve got a million bucks and no idea what to do with it.” His eyes glance behind me to where the shirts are. “Hey, maybe we should get you a whole get-up. You’d look nice in all black.” 

He walks past me to look at a shirt that is way too nice for me.

“Poe, I really don’t think…. I wouldn’t look good in all of this,” I insist, rushing over to him as he starts going through the most expensive shirts on the rack. I really am more of a sweatshirt jeans and baseball cap kind of guy. “I’d look awful if-”

“Finn, how do you know if you’ve never even seen yourself in it?” he tells me, shoving shirt after shirt into my hands. “Here, let’s get you some pants.” 

“Um… ok, I’ll try them, but you’re not buying anything for me,” I allow, running after him with my pile of shirts. 

“Well, let’s just see what you like, and then we’ll decide…”

I decide to humor him and not protest all of the clothes he shoves at me. You’d think he was some kind of fashion connoisseur, the way he flicks through all of the clothes in the store, only taking half a second to decide what is and isn’t worthy of trying on. He mutters something about a few of the things being good for himself, but he only picks clothes for me to try on. I’d honestly feel slightly less awkward if he’d try on clothes too, because right now, I feel like everyone in the store is staring at me. 

“Now just come out and show me when there’s one you like,” he directs, leading me over to the fitting room. “I’ll be out here looking at stuff for me.” 

“Um… yeah,” I answer, balancing the pile of clothes in my arms as I stumble into the fitting room. 

I think the last time I get new clothes was when we went through the hand me downs back at the orphanage. I’ve never tried anything on in a store in my life, so I’m practically tripping over my feet trying to get all these outfits on in this tiny cubicle. Thankfully it sounds like there’s only one other person in here way down at the end, and the generic poppy music filtering through the speakers in the store is enough to mask any sound, so I don’t have to worry too much about sounding as if I’m falling over.

It takes me a couple outfits in, but I actually like some of them. I don’t think I’ve ever worn anything but t shirts and sweatshirts, so it’s very unreal to see myself in button downs and dress shirts. And pants that aren’t beaten to hell. 

“Damn,” Poe praises, looking me over as I stand in front of him in a pair of fancy black jeans and a black button down shirt with a light grey jacket. “You look hot.” 

He walks closer to me, his eyes sweeping over my body as I shift my weight from each foot. 

“Does everything fit ok?”

“Yeah. I think so.” 

“Was this your favorite one?”

“Um… well, yeah… are you sure it looks ok?” 

“Are you kidding?” he laughs, his eyes glinting with some of the spark they have back at the club. “You’re making _me_ jealous.”__

_ _I glance down at the expensive clothing, trying to do the math in my head, and relieved that I remembered to bring my wallet. _ _

_ _“I think I’ll get the jeans,” I tell him, looking up and smiling slightly. _ _

_ _“Why not get the whole thing?”_ _

_ _“I really don’t think I need all of this, I mean… I don’t go anywhere.”_ _

_ _“Well then maybe this can encourage you,” he replies pointedly. _ _

_ _It would be nice to have clothes to wear if the right occasion does come up. I’d hate to have to wear the same old clothes if I ever go back to the club again. But in the end, I really do only have enough money for the jeans. _ _

_ _By the time I’ve come out of the fitting room, balancing my pile of clothes once again, it seems Poe has found himself a dark blue jacket and a white dress shirt. _ _

_ _He starts laughing as soon as he sees me come out, much to my confusion. _ _

_ _“You know you can just leave the clothes on the rack over there,” he nods back toward the fitting room where a very cluttered return rack seems to be buried. “You don’t have to put them all back.”_ _

_ _Working at a retail store myself, I can assure anyone that it’s always nice to have a little help from the customers putting things away. _ _

_ _“It’s ok,” I shake my head, going to put the shirts back. “That rack doesn’t look like it can take much more.” _ _

_ _He seems almost surprised at this for some reason. Once again, I don’t expect someone like him to even be aware of the little problems like this. _ _

_ _Poe runs up to the front counter just after I’ve stepped up. It seems like he decided on getting those shoes after all. He puts up his jacket and shirt, but then puts the shoes and two other items aside, which I see to be the jacket and shirt I had liked that he must have somehow snatched up after I had put them back._ _

_ _“Can you bag these separately?” he asks the woman checking us out as I see he’s got the shirt and jacket I had liked. “They’re a gift.” _ _

_ _The woman nods and continues as Poe takes out his credit card and I stand there gawking at him. _ _

_ _“Poe, I told you, you don’t have to-”_ _

_ _“Just think of it as an early birthday present,” he waves his hand as if it’s nothing. “Considering I don’t even know when your birthday is.” _ _

_ _He glances over at me and notices my expression._ _

_ _“I told you, they looked great,” he persists, handing his card to the woman. “Don’t worry about it.”_ _

_ _I try not to worry about. Especially when he swoops in and buys the jeans for me as well. I hate having people pay for me, mostly because I feel guilty at the bit of relief I have at the fact that I can continue saving up my money from the sixteen hours a week that I work. _ _

_ _On top of that, after we go to some watch store where Poe seems to know the owner and gets himself a particularly expensive watch, he decides to buy me lunch as well. _ _

_ _“You don’t have to do this, you know,” I tell him as we sit outside the sandwich shop on a small metal table while Poe devours his bacon club. He always eats as if he’s starving. “Not going out that much allows me to have a bit of money saved up.”_ _

_ _“Yeah, and you need that money,” he reminds me. “I’m not oblivious, Finn. I know you’re trying to work and go to school. You should be saving every penny.” _ _

_ _I stare down at my BLT, which I’ve only taken a couple bites of so far. _ _

_ _“Well… thank you, but-”_ _

_ _“You need a break,” he tells me, his eyes boring into mine with sudden seriousness now. “It’s ok to have a little fun once in a while. And besides…” _ _

_ _He grins at me with that subtle, yet fierce hunger in his stare from the other day. _ _

_ _“You deserve to be wined and dined. Even though you don’t think so.” _ _

_ _It’s quiet for a while as we finish eating and I consider his words, recalling that I’ve never really had a break for a few years. Even when school is closed for the holidays, I just pick up extra shifts at work to stay busy. _ _

_ _“So when are you free again, Finn?” Poe asks me after we’ve left the sandwich shop and he’d asked if there was anywhere else I wanted to go. I never shop at the mall, so I had no idea what other stores are here. Therefore, I just said no. _ _

_ _“Um… well, I guess next Friday,” I answer as we head out into the parking lot where a lot more cars seemed to have parked. _ _

_ _“Seriously?” he asks, putting on his sunglasses as he heads, I guess to where his car is parked. “This whole week, you can’t spare a bit of time for me?”_ _

_ _I feel my heart speed up slightly at his suggestion, wondering if we really are “together” at this point or not. The last relationship I had was in my junior year of high school, and it lasted a week. _ _

_ _“Well, I don’t… I mean, I can… I have time after school. On the weekdays.”_ _

_ _I remember Rey telling me the club is closed on Wednesdays, but I don’t want to ask him just in case he wants to spend his day off alone. _ _

_ _He stops at a brown colored buick, pulling the keys out of his pocket. It somehow wasn’t a car I expected him to have, but someone like him probably owns more than one vehicle._ _

_ _“How about you come meet me outside the club, Monday night,” he suggests, unlocking the doors and stepping over to the passenger side, swooping past me and opening my door. _ _

_ _He stands, holding it open, waiting for my answer. _ _

_ _“Monday night… sure.” _ _

_ _“Great,” he grins as I step into the car. _ _

It smells like him. Not the polished him from the club that smells like roses and expensive cologne, but the real him. That just smells like… _him_. __

_ _ _ _ _ _“So,” he begins as he gets into the driver’s seat, closing the door beside him and letting the car fill with silence. “Shall I take you home? Or… somewhere else?”_ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I realize I’m not at all ready to go home yet. I don’t have a lot of homework, and it’s only two o’clock. I’m not ready to spend the rest of the day sitting in my room or lounging on the couch with the girls watching tv. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I don’t need to go home yet,” I tell him as I gaze out the window, trying to sound nonchalant._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I don’t have to look at him to know he’s grinning. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Fantastic,” he responds. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _We spend the next hour just driving around town. Then driving through Canto Bight and then down the freeway. I can tell Poe loves driving. He has an expert way of getting himself through the busy streets of the city and then weaving his way to the fast lane on the freeway, going as fast as he can while keeping the car in control. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The windows are down and I relish in the delightfully chilly air that whips through the car as Poe blasts music out of the stereo. I find myself laughing giddily, much like I did the other night. There’s something exciting about all of it. Then something about watching Poe’s curly dark hair blow gently against the wind that makes my stomach do flips. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _His deep brown eyes gaze eagerly at the street ahead of his, and I lean back in my seat, hanging my hand out the window and gazing at how fast everything passes us by, feeling the speed rush through every inch of my body. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Normally, I’d be panicking at being in a situation like this. But at the moment, I find myself willing to trust Poe with my life. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Especially with the comforting sensation of his hand holding mine the whole way._ _ _ _


	11. Chapter 11

Monday night can’t come quick enough. The two days I spend working feel like the longest of my life, despite my new eagerly positive attitude that helps not make the work quite as tedious as it usually is. 

Rey and Jessika can only guess what must be going on all weekend as I’m in a refreshingly eager mood. Thankfully, they don’t say anything in front of the others, just give me knowing snickers every now and then whenever I can’t keep myself from grinning to myself, thinking about how much closer Monday is getting. Usually not a day people would look forward to. 

After classes are over at three thirty, I don’t even wait for the others before running back to the house to finish my homework and get ready for tonight. 

It’s well before the time Poe would be off duty, but I take a shower and get dressed at around five o’clock simply because I can’t sit around and distract myself any longer.

I’ve never really dedicated much focus to how I look. Since my features are usually mostly hidden by a baseball cap and the rest of myself in baggy clothes, I don’t really worry about it. 

But tonight, I spend nearly forty five minutes standing in front of the bathroom mirror, making sure I don’t look like too much of a slob. And after that, I spend a good hour putting on every piece of clothing I have, saving the new outfit I have for last. It sounds stupid, but I’ve been contemplating all day whether I should wear it or not. I don’t know what we’re doing tonight, so I’m not sure what the proper fashion etiquette is. 

In the end, I end up just throwing on faded blue jeans (which didn’t start out that way) a white long sleeved shirt and my green sweatshirt. I figure I might as well feel comfortable, at least tonight when I’m already so nervous. I just have to hope he wasn’t thinking of going anywhere super nice. 

“So I’m guessing we should expect you late tonight?” Rey whispers once I’ve come downstairs. 

“I think so,” I blush.

“You’re going to meet him at the club?”

“Yeah. I don’t know where we’re going though.” 

“Uh huh,” she smiles as I check to make sure I have my wallet and my phone. “And… what will be happening on this mysterious date?” 

“I don’t know. I usually let him take the lead.” 

“Ok, then you have to text me so I know you haven’t been kidnapped.” 

“Seriously?” I ask her, raising my eyebrows. “You’ve been secretly going out with a mysterious man and you think I might be unsafe?” 

“Look, I know Kylo seems very scary, but he’s actually the sweetest person-”

“Yeah yeah, I know,” I fake a smile, still not comfortable bringing up my suspicions. “I know you wouldn’t make any stupid decisions, and you should be confident that I won’t either.” 

“Ok,” she sighs as I head for the door once I hear the other girls coming down the stairs. “What should I tell Rose this time? You’re off on another after school study session?”

“Does she really ask every time where I’m going?” I whisper guiltily. 

Rey puts her hands on her hips, shrugging. 

“You used to hate going out, and now all of a sudden you have tons of places to be. So, yeah, she’s curious.” 

“Well, I have no excuse,” I admit. “If she asks, just… tell her the truth, I guess.” 

Rey looks about as awful as I feel. 

“That’s really going to hurt her.”

“There’s nothing I can do about it,” I tell her honestly. 

And it’s true. As kind as Rose is, I can’t worry about trying not to hurt her feelings. Especially when, for the first time in a while, I’m beginning to feel less and less stressed about everything in my life. 

“Well, have fun,” Rey smiles encouragingly. “And be home at a decent hour, young man.”

She reaches over to hug me briefly before quickling shuffling me out the door just as Jess comes down looking very curious about what’s going on. 

It’s pretty quiet down at the club when I arrive. I can tell it’s still open, but of course there aren’t nearly as many people. Just those who need a little break after a hard Monday, I suppose. 

I stand across the street, sitting on the stairs leading up to some apartment building. It looks pretty nice, and I know it must cost a fortune to live in since it’s right across from the hottest club in the city. Which also makes me consider that living in a place like this might not be worth the price if every weekend would be bombarded by a never ending crowd practically right outside your front door. 

I want to maybe do something on my phone, or take a walk around just to keep myself busy, but I can only shift maybe an inch where I’m sitting, my eyes glued to the door of the club, thinking Poe could walk out at any second. 

Someone who does walk out the front door, looking incredibly agitated as always, is Kylo Ren. 

He marches out the front doors after throwing them open, walks over and says something sharply to the men watching the entrance, before stomping off to the parking garage that’s a couple buildings down from where I’m sitting. 

His enraged gaze snaps over to me for just a second, causing me to quickly turn my head away until he’s disappeared into the parking garage. 

I don’t know what it is now that pissed him off so bad, but I hope he’s not going to see Rey. 

Just as I’m trying not to roll my eyes, I see two men exit the club, looking off to where Kylo had stormed off and whispering to each other. 

I immediately recognize the lanky blonde haired man from the bar the other night, and also the black haired elvish man Poe had kicked out weeks ago. 

They’re still dressed in the same black suits and fedoras, glancing around casually as they talk, as if they’re trying to be discreet. 

I freeze, hoping I’m far enough away that the blonde one doesn’t recognize me from the other night. I don’t know what he would do if he did, but I don’t have very many places to run if something happens.

After a moment, a black Rolls Royce pulls up alongside the sidewalk, stopping right in front of the club. The two men nod toward the driver and slide into the backseat before the car pulls away, mixing in with the array of vehicles rushing through the crowded street. 

My head snaps back over toward the garage where a black lamborghini has roared out of the entrance, zipping out onto the street, the vehicle looking and sounding as angry as its driver. 

Jess had said Kylo drove a lamborghini. 

As soon as it speeds down the emptiest lane on the street, the Rolls Royce zips over to get behind it, causing a sudden burst of honking and tires screeching as it cuts across the lanes to follow the lamborghini ripping down the street. 

I’m left staring after the two vehicles until they both turn off onto another street.

My mind immediately tries jumping to several different conclusions.

Are they meeting up somewhere? Did Poe kick them all out? Are they all planning something behind Poe’s back? Or does Kylo even _know_ that car is following behind him?__

_ _My furious contemplating is interrupted when I see someone else walking out of the club entrance. _ _

_ _It’s Poe, clean shaven, his dark hair shiny and slicked back, and looking well put together as he always does here, though it looks like he quickly changed into some jeans and boots, his brown leather jacket covering up the fancy shirt he’s still wearing. _ _

_ _As I get a better look at him, I can see his slicked back hair looks slightly tousled, as if he’d been rushing. _ _

_ _“Have a good night, sir,” one of them men watching the front door nods to him as Poe takes out a cigarette and lights it. He looks tired. _ _

_ _“You as well, Tony,” he replies, his voice sounding like it’s still in host mode. _ _

_ _I stand up from where I’m sitting and he spots me immediately. _ _

_ _As he crosses the street over to me, I come to the decision to not worry him with what just happened unless he asks me about it. Tonight was supposed to be about me and him, not anything else. _ _

_ _I hope you haven’t been waiting long,” he smiles, seeming to push down whatever was on his mind just a moment ago that had him looking so exhausted. _ _

_ _“Not at all,” I shake my head as he walks up to me and grabs my hand in his. _ _

_ _“I hope you can excuse the cigarette,” he explains as he immediately starts leading my down the sidewalk, back the way I had come. “It’s been a long night.”_ _

_ _“That’s ok,” I assure him, walking alongside him and wondering where he has in mind to go. _ _

_ _He takes a drag off the cigarette then throws his head back, looking up at the sky and sighing tiredly. _ _

_ _“Finn?”_ _

_ _“Yes?”_ _

_ _“I need to forget about tonight. Why don’t you take me to your favorite place in the world.” _ _

_ _

_ _I wouldn’t call the park my favorite place in the world, but it’s definitely the best place to go when I want to get away from my life, which seems to be Poe’s goal tonight. So that’s how I end up leading the way back into town and through the empty grassy fields spread out along miles and miles. _ _

_ _Because of how dim the streetlights are, it would be pitch black if it weren’t for the lights from the city illuminating the distance with a sharp gold hue. _ _

_ _“Do you come here a lot?” Poe asks, grinning excitedly as he walks a few steps ahead of me, looking around in wonder. _ _

_ _“All the time. No one really comes around here because the playground’s all run down and I guess they don’t take care of the grass that well.” _ _

_ _“It’s really nice,” he tells me, to my surprise. _ _

_ _“If you think this is cool, wait until you see the view,” I tell him mysteriously as I walk past him towards the hill I usually sit at when I come here to do homework or listen to music._ _

_ _“Oh, now you’ve got me curious!” he exclaims, following my gaze and running past me toward the hill. _ _

_ _I laugh, running to catch up to him as he races straight to the top in an amazingly short amount of time. _ _

_ _“Do you run track or something?” I ask as I finally climb to the top of the hill where he’s waiting patiently. _ _

_ _“No, I’m just amazing,” he grins. “Now what’d you want to show me?”_ _

_ _“Turn around,” I nod. _ _

_ _He follows my instructions, turning to gaze out at the view of the sea of city lights glittering miles away from us. _ _

_ _“No way,” he gawks in astonishment. “Is that…”_ _

_ _“Canto Bight. You can see the whole thing from here.” _ _

_ _He walks closer to the edge, raising up to his top toes to gaze through the maze of twinkling lights. _ _

_ _“I think I’m too short, I can’t see the club,” he reports. _ _

_ _I walk closer to him, following his gaze. I never even considered looking for the club before. _ _

_ _But once I start looking, it’s pretty easy to spot. _ _

_ _“It’s one of the tallest ones,” I grin. “With the darker lights. Can’t you recognize your own building?”_ _

_ _It looks like he’s staring right at it. _ _

_ _“I can’t see it,” he shakes his head. “Show me.” _ _

_ _I stare at him for a moment, then back out at the lights. _ _

_ _I reach down and take his hand, raising it up so that he’s in the direction of the maze of lights. _ _

_ _His fingers wrap around my hand, and I startle slightly at the warmth of his skin. _ _

_ _“Right there,” I direct, trying to stop my voice from quivering. I guide his hand so that he’s pointing straight at it. _ _

_ _I don’t realize how close my face is to his until he turns his head back toward me, his hair softly brushing along my cheek. _ _

_ _His dark eyes stare into mine for a moment before trailing down to my lips. _ _

_ _Before I can figure out what is about to happen, his lips push against mine, his body leaning up against my chest as my free hand instinctively wraps around his waist. _ _

_ _After my shock has quickly melted away, I kiss him back, my eyes falling closed as I hold him against me, feeling butterflies shoot through my stomach. He turns his body in my arms so that he’s facing me completely, his hands both reaching up to my neck to hold my face closer to his, my nose touching against his rough skin as I curl my other arm around his waist. _ _

_ _He pulls away for a moment and I nearly cry out in protest. _ _

_ _“Sit down,” he whispers breathlessly, pushing me down onto the grass. I obey, sitting down on the icy cold grass as he straddles himself on top of me, making my heart jump to my throat. _ _

_ _He pulls my head closer to his and connects his lips with mine once again, using his other hand to run down my torso until he reaches my waist, slipping his hand under my sweatshirt and my shirt to graze his fingers along my bare skin. _ _

_ _A small noise escapes from my throat and Poe gently pushes me down until I’m laying on my back and he’s perched on top of me, leaning down and suckling my lips while his hand crawls along my ribs and across my stomach. _ _

_ _He sits up after a moment, leaving me panting on the ground, my head a whirlwind of sensations. He huffs in amusement at my arms laying splayed out beside me. _ _

_ _“Do you want to touch me?” he asks, reaching over to take ahold of one of my hands. _ _

_ _My eyes open to look at him leaning over me, putting my hand under his shirt. _ _

_ _I brush my fingers along his warm skin. Even this skin feels rough against my touch, much like his hands and his face. _ _

_ _He goes back to kissing me as I slide my other hand up under the brown leather jacket and the fine material of his shirt._ _

_ _My eyes close again as I examine his body with my hands, running my fingers over his strong torso, along his ribcage, up to his chest. _ _

_ _He hisses sharply, biting down on my lip as my fingers graze over his nipples and I groan as my back arches against the grass. _ _

_ _Poe rolls over onto his back next to me, breathing as heavily as I am. Finally I feel somewhat equal with him. _ _

_ _I stare up at the stars, waiting for my heartbeat to calm down as the tingling sensation that was just burning through me slowly begins to fade out. _ _

_ _“We should probably stop before I ravage you in the middle of this field,” he informs me. “Not that that wasn’t… amazingly enjoyable.” _ _

_ _I just nod, beginning to feel a cold feeling go through me, missing his warmth. I reach over to find his hand, gripping it tightly in mine. _ _

_ _“I like you too, Poe.” _ _

_ _I can almost hear him smiling. _ _

_ _“Do you really?” _ _

_ _“A lot.”_ _


	12. Chapter 12

By the time we’re walking down the vacant streets back toward the boarding house, I still haven’t let go of Poe’s hand. I never knew I’d get to the point where I feel as comfortable with someone as I do with Rey. But now, when it’s just him and I, it feels like I’ve known him for years. 

“Finn,” Poe sighs happily as we continue down the dimly illuminated sidewalk. “I don’t know how to thank you. It’s been a while since I’ve felt like this.”

“Like what?”

“A normal person. A normal person with a boyfriend.” 

I blush, staring down at the ground as we walk. 

“I’m glad. I want you to be happy. You seem…”

He looks over at me curiously as I consider whether or not I should express my concern to him.

“I seem…?” 

“You seem different. Outside the club.”

His eyes immediately return to the saddened state they’re usually in, and I feel a swell of guilt. 

“I didn’t mean to-”

“I think it’s easy for me to get lost in the club,” he explains, glancing around at the beaten up buildings around us. “All the excitement, the extravagance… it’s nice to lose myself in my role, I guess. It’s easier than having to deal with the reality.” 

I don’t say anything, but I want to know what he means. Though I’m not sure he wants to talk about it with me. 

“I really need someone like you, Finn. Someone… kind, and pure, and not connected with anything. Someone who reminds me of… good, happy things.” 

I’m touched at his words, but even more worried. 

“Honestly, until now, Kylo was the only one keeping my head straight. And his company’s nowhere near as welcoming as yours.” 

I guess he must notice my disgusted expression. 

“You don’t care for him too much,” he laughs as I try not to roll my eyes.

“You could say that,” I reply bitterly. 

“He isn’t as grumpy as he comes across. And once you get to know him and happen to get on his good side, he’s fiercely loyal. And from what I hear, him and Rey have been getting along spectacularly.”

“Yeah, apparently.” 

He turns his head to look at me cautiously. 

“You don’t approve.” 

I hesitate before deciding I might as well be vocal with my misgivings. 

“I don’t trust him. Especially with her.” 

He doesn’t answer for a while, seeming to consider how he should word his response. 

It gets so quiet, I almost think we're just going to move past the whole thing, but he finally begins speaking again as we walk silently down the cold, vacant sidewalk. 

“I am going to tell you something that you might not like,” he starts, throwing me off at the sudden change of subject.

“What do you-”

“I don’t exactly have a shiny clean history, Finn. In fact it’s probably a bit more fucked up than most.” 

I try not to let him see it, but these words frighten me. 

“You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t feel comfortable talking about…”

“You deserve to know,” he speaks sharply. “Besides, I’ve never told anyone about it. Maybe it will be good for me.”

He doesn’t sound convinced at that last part, but continues anyway. 

“I didn’t have a very… encouraging home life. I ran away when I was very young… I doubt my parents even noticed. I came to Canto Bight, thinking I could make it big. I’ve always been a bit of a showman, so I thought the city would be the perfect place for me. This was way back when everyone was making big money over there, and… I guess sixteen year old me thought I could get in on it.”

His hand loosens its grip on mine, and I automatically tighten my fingers around his. 

“Well, long story short, I fell in with some bad people,” he continues, looking around as if he’s trying not to completely focus all his attention on this conversation. “I was told that if I made enough money with this… group, I could use my cut to open my own nightclub. So, I agreed…. ” 

I don’t know who this “group” is, but I can tell it’s probably nothing honest. At first I just assume it was some kind of thieving gig, but then I think of a more sinister and popular theory. 

“You didn’t… sell drugs, did you?”

To my shock, he laughs.

“No, I'm afraid not. Though I was certainly around a lot of them. And as much as I was encouraged to, I never took part in them.” 

“Well, then… what did you do?” I ask as the humor slowly leaves his expression. 

He sighs, looking as if he’s trying to find a way to make this explanation any lighter. 

“I… had sex with people. For money.” 

My pace slows to a stop. He turns to look at me, looking as if he predicted this reaction from me. 

I don’t mean to do it, but I drop my hand away from his, a million questions running through my hand. 

There’s no way he was ever one of those people. Not him, he’s… he’s _Poe Dameron_, he has everything. He could never…__

_ _I feel a jab in my chest when I see him trying to hide the hurt flickering over his expression. _ _

_ _My hand quickly reaches for his again, but I don’t look at him, not yet._ _

_ _“You were… a prostitute?” I ask as I slowly begin walking again, and he follows beside me, staring at me carefully as I keep my eyes on my feet. _ _

_ _“Yes,” he confirms. “And not a high end one, I’m afraid.”_ _

_ _“What does that mean?” _ _

_ _“It means I was expected to fuck anyone who had the money, regardless of who they were,” he replies, making me wince at his sudden abruptness. _ _

_ _“So… you… did you work at a club, or…”_ _

_ _“I was what they call a streetwalker,” he answers, sounding surprisingly comfortable with describing all of this for me now. Almost as if he is able to distract himself by recounting the details. “Every night they’d send me out around the city to pick up anyone who was interested. Mostly men, every once in a while, a woman.” _ _

_ _I just nod, unsure of what to say. I don’t want to say anything insensitive, but I don’t even know how to begin feeling about all of this. I’m still afraid to look at him. I don’t want him to look different. _ _

_ _“Sometimes they’d set us up with people… people they were trying to make a deal with, or people they owed a favor to. Those were a little scarier, because we never even saw the client before… you know, getting into a bedroom with them…”_ _

_ _“Who were you working for?” I ask swiftly, mostly because I don’t want to hear about him going into a bedroom with anyone. “I mean… who is this “group” you’re talking about?”_ _

_ _This part he seems a little less willing to talk about. _ _

_ _“It was a group that had a lot of connections all over the city. Probably further than that. One of them was living in the same apartment building I lived in when I first moved to Canto Bight, and he got me in with them.”_ _

_ _He shrugs, and I glance up for a moment to see, this time, the eyes of a man who has lived a very long life in a short amount of time. _ _

_ _“It wasn’t ideal, but it sure made me a lot of money that I needed.” _ _

_ _I take a deep breath, trying to find a way to properly process all of this. _ _

_ _“But… didn’t you… get hurt?” _ _

_ _I wish I hadn’t asked that question as soon as I see his face after I’ve asked it. _ _

_ _“It wasn’t as bad as the movies make it out to be,” he tries to assure me, attempting to sound trivial, but his voice sounding unbalanced now. “But you get asshole customers every now and then, like with everything.” _ _

_ _I can tell he experienced much more than the type of asshole customers I experience at work, but I don’t want to push him any further. Not only because I don’t want him to relive it, but I don’t really want to have to picture it. _ _

_ _“Anyway, Kylo had business dealings with these guys, that’s how I met him,” he continues, thankfully beginning to look a little less haunted moving on from my thoughtless question. “But he knew they were shady and wanted out. He knew I wanted out too, so he helped me get all of my money together and I bought the building for the club. We cut off contact with the group, and I built everything up from there.”_ _

_ _He turns to look at me, and I finally meet his gaze._ _

_ _“Kylo may not be the ideal picture of a welcoming guy, but he’s been there for me in more ways than you can imagine. He got me out of… that whole dire situation, which very much put himself on the line. And he cares very much about Rey, he would never do anything to hurt her. So I don’t think you should worry.” _ _

_ _I’m silent as I consider all of this. _ _

_ _Maybe I was too hasty in deciding what kind of a person Kylo Ren is. If he decided to risk himself just to help out Poe from something like that, then how bad of a person can he really be? _ _

_ _“Thank you for telling me all of this,” I express, still a bit unable to recover from the shock. “I’m sorry for acting weird, it’s just… it’s a lot…”_ _

_ _“I understand,” he assures me as we turn the street to where the boarding house is. “I didn’t mean to throw all of this on you tonight. Believe me, it’s not a past that I’m proud of.” _ _

_ _“It’s ok,” I tell him, still holding onto his hand, even when we’re standing right outside the house. I look into his eyes that look slightly filled with relief that I haven’t run from him yet. “It doesn’t change how I feel about you.” _ _

_ _The smile on his lips is small, but I can tell that these are the words he’d wanted to hear. _ _

_ _I don’t say much else to him when we’re saying goodbye, just let him kiss me on the forehead and give him a quiet murmur of goodnight before I walk into the house._ _

_ _But that night, as I lay in bed, unable to stop thinking about everything Poe might have done, every person he slept with, wondering how many there are, who they are, how he felt about them… I start to get afraid that my opinion of him will change. That maybe he isn’t the person I thought he was. Perhaps there is more to his story. _ _

_ _I know what happened to him wasn’t his fault. He was young and naive, obviously, and was probably tricked into doing what he did. It’s not exactly an unheard of tale. But I also sense that there has to be more about his past that he’s choosing not to tell me. Who were these people he worked for? Why didn’t he explain more about how he got out? _ _

_ _My mind eventually goes to the troublesome men who seemed to hang around the club a lot, looking to start something, or planning something out, like the two men at the bar had been doing. _ _

_ _Do they have something to do with this? Did Poe do something to this “group” to make them angry? _ _

_ _I toss and turn all night, knowing I’m not going to get any sleep as I imagine explanation after explanation of what this can all add up to._ _


	13. Chapter 13

I don’t speak to Poe in a while. I tell myself it’s because I’m waiting for him to make the next move, but I feel as if I’m back where I was a month ago when I was first trying to forget all about him and my attraction to him. Because every time he pops into my mind, I picture him with someone else. 

I can’t judge him for his choices. I know when times are tough, you have to survive any way you can. And I know nothing of his problems, really. Which is why I’m so afraid to be around him now. 

How can someone like me ever be able to understand his life and what he’s been through? He kept saying how I make him feel happier, that I distract him from everything. But how would I ever be able to be there for him, in this kind of relationship, when his experience is so different from anything I could possibly comprehend? 

It’s Saturday, five days since I saw Poe. I don’t hear anything from him and I don’t try to contact him, telling myself that I’m just taking a break from him while I digest the revelation made to me a few nights ago. 

But as I’m sitting in the break room, taking my last fifteen minute break of the night, my phone buzzes to life with his name on the screen. 

On the first two rings, I just sit there, my eyes wide as I try to decide whether or not to just let it ring or pick it up. Then I’m standing up and shuffling out the door during the next four rings until I’m out of earshot of anyone. 

“Hello?” I ask tentatively after finally picking up on the sixth ring, already imagining everything I’m going to say if he’s about to break it off with me.

“Hello, Finn,” he answers, sounding as if he’s just stepped away from a very large crowd according to the muffled sounds of chatter in the background. “I see I’ve finally caught you on your break.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve been calling you all day, but I don’t really know your work schedule, so…” 

I never look at my phone when I’m working, even on my breaks.

“I’m sorry,” I apologize, just because I don’t know what I’m supposed to say. 

I hear him chuckle on the other end. 

“Christ Finn, I don’t expect you to pick up in the middle of your shift. But I wanted to talk to you, you haven’t called me all week.”

I know it’s my turn to explain as he goes silent, waiting for my reply.

“Um… I know, I just was… I didn’t know if…” 

“Are you off soon?” 

My rapid planning of how I’m going to explain myself quickly gets shafted.

“Yeah… eight thirty.”

“Good. Come down to the club. Just tell the gentlemen at the door who you are, they’ll let you in.” 

All I can think about is how I’ve just spent all day working and probably would be even less fun than usual if I were to go to the club right now. 

“Poe, I don’t know that that’s a good idea, I’m… I should go home and get some rest, I have work tomorrow morning-”

“Call out sick. I want you to stay the night with me.”

Rey and I are the only ones who worked late tonight, so I ask her to drop me off at the club before she drives back to the house. Of course, she can’t get too close to the entrance because the whole block is crowded.

“Is everything ok?” she asks as she pulls up about a block away, unable to get any closer than that. 

“Why wouldn’t everything be ok?” I ask, gazing out the window at the gigantic building, looking to be blazing the entire street with fiery light, even from this far away. 

“You seem… nervous.” 

She reaches over and places her hand comfortingly on my arm. 

“I’m staying the night,” I inform her, picking at my jeans. “So don’t… get worried when I’m not there tomorrow morning.” 

She’s quiet for a while and I’m too scared to look at her expression. 

“Ok,” I hear her trying to hide her smile. “But… don’t you work early tomorrow?”

“I’m calling out.” 

I look up at her to see a look of relief in her eyes as she reaches down to wrap her fingers around my hand. 

“Good for you,” she tells me seriously. My eyes squint in confusion as she nods encouragingly. “Have a good time, and don’t be so worried about everything for once.”

“I don’t know if that’s possible for me.” 

She shakes her head, rolling her eyes before leaning over and kissing me on the cheek. 

“Have fun,” she whispers before reaching over and opening my door. “Now get over there before this crowd gets any worse.”

“That would be impossible,” I assure her, stepping out of the car and onto the street. 

I know Rey is going to stay parked along the street for a little while, just in case something happens and I want to come running back to the car. And honestly, I probably would have if I’d been in this situation a few weeks ago. I don’t know why I keep walking, moving along the crowds of people until I’m walking past the large line outside the door, outside the red velvet rope keeping everyone in line.

I force my feet to stay planted in place as I walk up to the two black suited men standing guard and checking people in. They both seem incredibly more intimidating than usual, especially now that they’re both staring me down, gearing up as if they think I’m about to pull out a gun. 

“Um… My name in Finn Storm, I think… Poe- Mr. Dameron is expecting me?” 

When they glance at each other, I start to think I should have said that a bit more confidently and less suspicious sounding. 

They both whisper something to each other and one of them nods before stepping toward me, making my blood go cold. 

“This way, Mr. Storm,” he directs, beginning to walk around toward the door. 

I start to follow behind him, not sure if I should feel relieved yet, especially when he leads me right past the door and around to the side of the building. 

Thankfully, due to how lit up the place is, it isn’t a complete dark alleyway he leads me down. And once we’ve walked all the way to the back, I’m surprised to see there’s practically an entire parking lot hidden back here. But it’s all a mess of Mercedes’, BMWs, Audis, Corvettes, even Ferraris and Jaguars. The whole lot is probably worth close to what the whole club itself is worth. 

I’m led up a flight of stairs, toward two very grand looking double doors. This appears to be a more elegant, and less crowded entrance. 

There are two more black suited men standing at these doors, and they both move to pull them open after getting a sharp nod from the man leading me up the stairs. 

“After you, Mr. Storm,” he gestures me inside when the doors have been opened. 

I look around awkwardly before stumbling past them, through the doors and into the building.

“Ok,” I mutter, wondering how in the hell I’ve arrived at this point. 

We enter into the theater, where there is currently a grand elaborate show going on at the moment involving an array of men and women dressed in glittering satin sailor outfits while swinging around on poles and doing the splits while gyrating their hips, much to the delight of the crowd.

The man stops, and I stop behind him as he waves over to, what I soon see to be a woman standing beside the bar in the back of the room. 

Her sharp eyes turn toward us before strutting across the room, her long shimmering black evening gown billowing out behind her in her haste. 

As she gets closer, I recognize her as the woman who had been performing with Poe the first night I came here. Her vibrant red hair is now pulled back into an intricate French twist style, and her face is still painted in the same strong layers of makeup it had been before, along with sequins twinkling under her eyes that match the crystal earrings dangling from her ears. 

Her long arms are clad in black fishnets, and she holds a small cigarette in her right hand. This confuses me sufficiently, since smoking isn’t allowed in here at all. 

Her narrowed eyes fall on me, and I find myself correcting my posture and avoiding looking her straight in the eye. 

“This is the man here to see Poe?” she asks in a thick German accent. 

“He is. Mr. Dameron said he’d be arriving around this time, and he matches the description…”

“Oh relax Robert, I’m sure he’s not an imposter,” she rolls her eyes before turning back to me. 

Her icy eyes quickly sweep over me as she takes a quick drag off her cigarette. 

“Finn?” she asks. 

“Yes,” I answer with wide eyes. 

“If you’ll follow me,” she bows her head slightly. Her eyes flick back to the black suited man. 

“I will take him. Thank you, Robert.”

He nods before turning and walking back the way we’d come. 

The woman leads me along the edge of the room, around the wide eyed, applauding crowd, and toward the next set of doors that will lead us into the casino. 

“So you are Poe’s… special friend,” she affirms as she opens the doors to the casino. 

_Special friend?___

_ _“Um… I guess?”_ _

_ _It’s just as loud and crowded in here as well, and I struggle to keep up with the woman leading me toward the other side of the room as she seems to easily brush through the crowd of excited guests, while I nearly get crushed and trampled every step of the way. _ _

_ _We arrive at the large blue curtain shielding the restaurant on the other side. The woman reaches for the curtain, pulling it back to reveal the dark purple and gold lit room. _ _

_ _It’s slightly quieter in here than the previous room once she lets the heavy curtain fall closed behind us. _ _

_ _She leads me through the array of tables and booths covering the dark wooden floor, her eyes seemingly trained on a specific location. _ _

_ _I am soon able to make out Poe in a dark grey suit sitting at a small table lit with a small golden light at the center of the white clothed surface. I notice right away the somber expression on his face as he discusses something with the man sitting across from him, his fist sitting clenched on the table. I can’t see the face of the man across from him, but from the thick jet black hair, I can guess pretty easily. _ _

_ _It’s too crowded for me to make out what they’re saying until we’re right beside them, so I can only catch the end of what Kylo is saying._ _

_ _“... it doesn’t mean they’re going to just leave you here to do as you please…” _ _

_ _“Gentlemen,” the woman greets, sounding as if she wants to cut off the conversation before I can hear it. _ _

_ _“Vera,” Kylo greets after turning to look up at her. _ _

_ _Once his eyes land on me, Poe’s previously intense expression immediately melts away. _ _

_ _“Mr. Ren,” she nods in return before turning towards Poe. “Poe, your guest has arrived.”_ _

_ _“I see,” he grins, his eyes shining as I step forward. _ _

_ _Kylo throws a quick glance at me before turning back to Poe. _ _

_ _“We’ll talk tomorrow,” he says quietly as he stands up. _ _

_ _“Have a good night, Kylo,” Poe nods to him. _ _

_ _The tall man brushes past me without saying anything as Vera steps closer to where Poe is sitting._ _

_ _“I’m assuming I should consider you indisposed for the remainder of the night?” she asks him knowingly. _ _

_ _“I leave everything in your capable hands, Vera,” he nods at her. _ _

_ _I can’t tell if the look she gives is annoyed or more like she’s up for the challenge. _ _

_ _“Very well,” she agrees before turning sharply and walking back toward the casino. _ _

_ _“That would be my partner, Miss Vera Gorski,” Poe indicates, gesturing off to her. “A very intimidating, but extremely intelligent woman. Also refuses to obey the no smoking rule.” _ _

_ _I nod, my hands playing awkwardly at my sides._ _

_ _“She seems… interesting,” I respond, my eyes following the scary woman as she struts off. _ _

_ _“You can sit down, you know,” Poe speaks, pulling my attention back to him. _ _

_ _I reach down and pull out the chair previously occupied by Kylo Ren, sitting myself on the surprisingly comfortable leather cushion while Poe smiles at me in that way that he does when he’s amused by my awkwardness. _ _

_ _“How was work?” he asks, pouring a glass of wine and sliding it over to me. _ _

_ _“Work was… work,” I reply, curling my hand hesitantly around the fine glass. “It was busy, you know, because… it’s the weekend.” _ _

_ _“Yeah, tell me about it,” he huffs as he takes a sip of the liquid from his glass, which does not appear to be wine. _ _

_ _I laugh to myself, feeling silly._ _

_ _“Right,” I acknowledge. “Probably not quite as busy as it is here.” _ _

_ _“No, I’d guess not. Take a drink Finn, it’s not poisoned.”_ _

_ _My eyes go back to the glass in my hand as I slowly lift it from the table. I raise it to my lips and take a quick sip of the ruby colored drink, feeling my head instantly start to swirl from the alcohol mixed with my tiredness and the unusual events of tonight. _ _

_ _“Why did you invite me here?” I ask him after setting my glass down. His eyes raise to mine, that sad look that he sometimes has briefly glinting on his face before being covered up again. _ _

_ _“I don’t know, Finn… I guess I kind of miss you. I wish you were around more often, you’re always busy with work and school, and I’m busy with… everything here…”_ _

_ _The look that flickers across his face makes me want to ask if there’s something wrong, but I’m not quick enough before he’s hidden that sudden expression again. _ _

_ _“Do you want something to eat?” he asks me. “You’ve been working all day, you’re probably starving.” _ _

_ _I’m about to say no thank you, but the horrid empty feeling in my stomach after having nothing to eat all day aside from a can of microwaved mac and cheese is quick to change my tune._ _

_ _“That actually sounds like the biggest relief of my life,” I sigh, leaning back in my chair as Poe laughs at me. _ _

_ _I end up getting fillet mignon with roasted potatoes, a dish I’ve probably only ever seen in movies. And the taste is about twice as wonderful as anyone would fantasize. _ _

_ _This meal and I end up being the stars of the show, since I almost completely forget about Poe once I’ve started digging into the mouth watering meal. I only remember that I haven’t said a word to him in a long while after I’ve nearly cleaned the entire plate, saving the dishwasher a lot of work. _ _

_ _It’s also at this time I realize I probably should have been a bit more aware that people around me might not have appreciated having to see me inhale my food. _ _

_ _“Let’s go upstairs,” Poe decides standing up. “If you’ve finished.”_ _

_ _There’s not a thing left on my plate, and I’d be relieved to get away from all of these people, so his idea sounds beautifully inviting. _ _

_ _I follow behind him as he heads toward the curtain leading back into the casino, still just as busy as when I’d last walked through. _ _

_ _We go to the large counter in the back of the room, where the woman stands in front of the wall of keys beside the golden elevators. _ _

_ _“Lila, can I get the key for room 212, please,” Poe greets her with his usual charm. _ _

_ _“Of course, Mr. Dameron,” she smiles cheerfully, turning behind her and plucking one of the oversized keys off its spot on the wall. _ _

_ _“Thank you, my dear,” he expresses after she’s handed him the key, her eyes flickering toward me for a second, grinning brightly, as if she knows something. _ _

_ _“Do you do this a lot?” I ask as he leads me over to one of the elevators, hitting the button to go up. _ _

_ _“Do what?” he asks innocently as we wait for the doors to open. _ _

_ _“Do you have frequent… guests that you take up here?” I question as we step into the brightly lit elevator. Even in here looks like a design straight out of a palace, with the white and gold tiled floor and shiny gold walls, illuminated by the small chandelier glowing from the ceiling._ _

_ _“Honestly, I used to when I first opened the club,” he admits, sounding guilty. “I liked having my fun, I suppose… but I swear to you, it never meant anything to me. Not like it does now.” _ _

_ _The look he gives me allows me to believe him, even though I really have no reason to. _ _

_ _We reach the third floor and the doors slide open to reveal an extremely quiet hallway consisting of a long row of white doors. _ _

_ _I follow him as he walks briskly down the vacant corridor, his footsteps landing silently against the black carpet. I nearly run into him when he stops suddenly at one of the doors, using the key to unlock it. _ _

_ _He flicks the light on as we enter, as if it were his own home, and takes off his jacket, tossing it onto one of the chairs as I gaze around the room in surprise. _ _

_ _On account of how the rest of the club looks, I assumed the hotel rooms would be lavish suites with gold carpets and red velvet couches._ _

_ _Instead, the room is about the size of any other hotel room. But it feels warm, and inviting, like a well lived-in house. There is a large bed up against the wall decorated with white sheets and a light gold comforter that makes me remember the long tiring day I’ve just had being on my feet from twelve to eight. _ _

_ _The carpet is light brown with black designs painted over it, there are a couple comfy black leather sitting chairs and matching bedside tables, and a large window on the wall next to the closet that looks out over the glowing city lights. _ _

_ _The only lights in the place are the two big lamps on both bedside tables, and one by the window, which casts long shadows along the rich colored walls. Poe walks over to the window to pull the big light brown curtains over the glass, hiding us from view and suddenly making the room feel much smaller. _ _

_ _He sits himself on one of the leather chairs, taking off his shoes and then leaning up to begin undoing his tie. _ _

_ _I focus on the sound of my breathing, which sounds heavier and heavier as my body begins to inform me of how I feel about Poe undressing in front of me. _ _

_ _I have turned away after a while, so I don’t know how much he has taken off by the time he stands up and walks over to me. _ _

_ _“Do you want this?” he asks, his voice suddenly sounding like the most gentle, comforting thing I’ve heard, making me want to be wrapped in it. _ _

_ _His hands move to my waist, his body pressing up behind me. _ _

“I want you, Finn,” he whispers against my neck as his lips caress my skin. “I can make you feel so _good_…” __

_ _ _ _ _ _I let my eyes close as I feel my arousal intensify, seem to be made more intense than ever by the fact that we feel completely alone up here. _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Can I take these off?” he asks when I still haven’t said anything for a moment. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I look down to see his hands have already nearly finished unzipping my jacket and are now hovering over the top of my jeans. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Yeah,” I nod, feeling my heart race a million miles a second. “I’m sorry,” I quickly try to explain as he starts to undo my pants, feeling bad for just standing here like a statue. “I’m just… I’m…”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“It’s ok,” he grins as he steps back, pulling my jacket off my arms as he goes. “Tell me what you’re feeling.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Crap, where do I begin?_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“My… my head is spinning really fast,” I admit as he curls his fingers around my shirt and it takes me a second before I realize he wants me to raise my arms up. “And it’s hard to breathe…” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Have you ever had sex before?” he asks after he’s discarded my shirt, and my skin heats up when I realize how exposed I am now. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Once,” I reply, feeling his hands touch my waist again, this time guiding me back until he’s sat me down on the bed. I finally take this moment to look over at him as he sits down next to me, and I see he’s almost completely naked aside from his boxers. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“With a man or a woman?” he questions as I shyly kick my shoes off, my eyes staring widely at his perfectly toned stomach and chest._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“A woman… a girl,” I correct myself. “I was in high school.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Did you like it?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Truthfully, I never thought much about the awkward time I had lost my virginity with Jane Acosta, the girl I had dated junior year of high school. Because we broke up only a couple days after it, and it wasn’t that memorable of an experience, for either of us. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Um… not really?” I answer honestly. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He laughs of course as his hands brush lovingly along my shoulders and my back, making me visibly shiver. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Was there something you didn’t like doing?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I’d considered this question after Jane and I had done it, wondering why I didn’t find it as exhilarating as everyone had made it out to be. Eventually, I had boiled it down to the fact that I was very uncomfortable in the position I was in. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I didn’t like being on top,” I confide, feeling my face heat up at my bluntness. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He chuckles again as I slowly take my socks off, continuously glancing over at the door, wondering if it’s locked. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I was hoping you’d say that,” Poe whispers quietly, his voice melting into that sensual tone that makes my chest tighten. “So you don’t mind if I take control?” he clarifies as his rough hands touch against my bare chest, making me dizzy as he pushes me to lay down on the smooth comforter of the bed. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Uh, no, that’s fine,” I answer eagerly, gazing up into his eyes as he touches his palms to the side of my head, his fingers running through my hair, massaging my scalp. “I want you to.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I’m trying to get it solidly through my head that this is indeed happening right now as Poe scoots down my body to pull my jeans off and toss them to the floor, leaving me in my underwear. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I try not to act so nervous as he climbs on top of me, his body laying completely over mine while his lips attack my mouth hungrily, as if he’s been starving for this for weeks. He smells overwhelmingly of a rich combination of chocolate and cherry, and I can’t help wondering if it’s some kind of cologne or a type of alcohol he might have drank._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I don’t want to make him think I don’t want this, so I force myself to move, reaching my hands up to drag through his dark locks, letting my mouth open as I do so he can gently caress his tongue around the inside of my mouth._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I’m not embarrassed when I feel myself harden against his leg, but I do nearly jump out of my skin when he suddenly reaches his hand down my boxers to grab me firmly in his palm. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _My teeth bite down on his lip unintentionally as I groan in surprise, and he seems to like it, because he his hips suddenly buck against mine as he breathes heavily against my mouth. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I lean away from him to catch my breath, and he hastily removes my underwear, leaving everything out in the open, which makes me want to curl up and hide at first. But after he removes his final piece of clothing and lies down on top of me once more, I start to relax again._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He wraps his hand around my length again, this time starting to stroke his hand up and down, which makes my legs want to close together. Poe has secured himself on top of me so I can’t turn away, and he soon places his knees between my legs so I can’t close them. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Poe continues kissing me, one hand holding mine while he continues rubbing between my legs with the other. I run my hand through his hair, along his spine and eventually down to his backside. He squeezes his hand tighter around me, and my hips jerk up against his. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He rolls over to the side of the bed, reaching over to something in the drawer on the bedside table while I try to blink the stars out of my eyes. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He eventually slides out of his underwear after he’s grabbed whatever he needed, then I hear something tear open. I look over at see him putting a condom on, but not before I’m able to blush sufficiently form catching a quick glimpse of his very erect member. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Just so you know, I was hoping you’d want to do this tonight,” he clarifies, kneeling over me once more. “That’s why I put condoms in there, the hotel rooms just don’t come with them if that’s what you were assuming just now.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I laugh giddily at his joke, trying to push down the swell of nerves that have taken over again once he helps me to turn around onto my stomach so that my face is now hovering over the pillows, my arms reached up to the headboard. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I don’t want you to be scared,” he soothes me, laying on top of me and kissing along the side of my face. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I’m not scared, I’m just nervous,” I insist in a comically whispered tone. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Well don’t be,” he laughs, his hands dragging down my sides until they arrive at my hips. He pulls my hips up so that I’m on my knees. “Can you spread your legs out further?”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I take a deep breath and slowly move my knees farther apart while I feel him line himself up. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I tense up when I feel him touch against me, and he quickly puts one of his hands over mine, his lips kissing against my back, trying to get me to relax. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _At first, I get a horribly sick feeling that this is about to go as awkward and unexciting as it did with Jane Acosta in high school. I’m not comfortable on my knees, so I try lowering myself a little bit, but then I feel too tense and even more uncomfortable. And it’s at this time when I realize I’m hardly even aroused anymore._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Finn,” Poe speaks, his voice sounding invitingly calm amidst my silent anxiety attack. “Just lay down.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I lay myself flat on the bed, feeling like the least sexiest person alive. How in the world can he possibly be turned on by me?_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He lays down on top of me again, leaning over to kiss me on the lips and running the back of his hand down my side. After a while, I start to feel better once I’ve relaxed and we’ve kissed for a while. It starts to feel more natural when I stay where I’m comfortable and he reaches down to position himself again. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _His face touches against mine as I feel him enter me slowly, and I bite my lip against the pain, but it wears off quickly. _ _ _ _

“_Finn_,” he moans into my ear, making me sigh breathily, my body going completely limp. __

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I grunt into the pillow as he moves back and forth inside me, his hips rutting against mine. My heart beats excitedly in my chest as Poe’s legs curl around mine and he hits a spot inside me that makes me gasp loudly, my body jerking against the bed. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _He turns me onto my side, smiling against my skin as he keeps hitting that spot deep inside me. _ _ _ _ _ _

“_Fuck_,” I pant, I think to both our surprise. His hands wrap around my chest, his fingers circling my nipples as I feel myself getting closer to my peak. “Poe…” __

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“It’s ok,” he whispers, his voice sounding strained as he buries his face in my neck and I know that he’s close too. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I love you_ I think in my head as I arch my back against him. _I love you…_

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I groan as he finishes inside me and I reach my climax, spasming against the bed as he holds me tightly all the way through it. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _We just lay there, not moving for a few minutes until our breathing has finally calmed and I start to feel as if I could go to sleep. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I breathe sharply as he pulls out of me and the pain starts to set in again. But I don’t care. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He sits up to take the condom off and I turn to look at him over my shoulder. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Um… what should we do about… the bed?” I ask, embarrassed by the mess I made. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Don’t worry about it,” he smiles, as he reaches for the phone on the bedside table, quickly dialing a number. “I chose staff that are very discreet.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I’m about to ask him what that means when he suddenly starts speaking in what I can only come to describe as his club voice. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Yes, this is Poe in room 212,” he says into the phone. “Can I get another comforter?” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Poe knows how mortifyingly embarrassed I am already, so I go and hide in the bathroom while he stays and waits for housekeeping to come. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I end up just standing in front of the sink and staring at myself in the mirror, trying to see if I look any different. That probably sounds ridiculous, but… I’m pretty sure that was what having sex is supposed to feel like. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He knocks on the door once the housekeeper is gone, and grabs ahold of me, dragging me back to the bed once I open the door. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I laugh as he tackles me onto the bed, which now has a clean comforter, while kissing and biting my neck. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Can we do it again?” I ask him. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He laughs against my neck before sitting up, taking off the shirt and pajama pants he’d put on. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“I’d love to,” he says, reaching beside me and ripping back the covers to the bed. I scoot out of the way until we’re both under the covers and he envelops me in his arms. “But, I think that’s enough for you for one night,” he continues, kissing my forehead. “I don’t want to wear you out too much.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I’m about to protest, but suddenly being under the covers, his warm embrace wrapped around me, my body starts to feel like lead._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _His hands stroke soothingly along my back as my eyelids grow heavier and heavier until I feel myself slump against his arm, instantly lulled to sleep by the combination of my long, eventful day and his warm touch._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	14. Chapter 14

I wake up feeling as if I’ve had the best sleep of my life. The bed I’m in is obviously not the aged, dingy mattress I usually sleep on every night. I don’t move an inch and don’t even want to open my eyes for the first few minutes I become conscious. 

My eyes eventually open to a soft light pushing through the closed curtain in the hotel room. I sit up slightly, glancing around as my eyes tiredly blink open, my body feeling a sheen of excitement when I remember where I am and what happened last night. 

I look to my side to see Poe fast asleep, completely splayed across the bed, his arms and legs looking as if they’re trying to touch every square inch of the mattress. I don’t really move at all in my sleep, but he looks as if he tosses and turns all through the night. 

After laying and staring at him for a while, seeing that he’s no where close to waking up, I reach over to brush my fingers through his hair. 

My heart swells in my chest as I smile, looking over at him, unable to believe this is happening. I can’t remember ever feeling so happy waking up. 

My eyes trail down to his bare chest, moving slightly with his quiet breathing. I remember running my hands over it, how his rough, yet impossibly warm skin felt against my hands. 

He’s so beautiful, even just laying here asleep. 

I reach over to pull the sheet down just an inch, gazing down his torso, to his waist…

“Finn, you’re making me cold.” 

I throw the sheet back over him and nearly leap out of the bed. He chuckles sleepily as he peeks his eyes open at me. 

“I know, I’m difficult to get enough of,” he sighs, rolling toward me and slinging his arm around my body. “How did you sleep?”

“Really good,” I reply, scooting closer to him, relieved at his warmth. 

He hums, closing his eyes again, resting his head on my chest. 

“I haven’t felt this amazing in a long time,” he tells me, rubbing the side of his face against my skin. 

I smile to myself, hugging him close to me, wanting to tell him that it feels like I’m falling in love with him. But I know it’s probably too soon, and I don’t want to ruin this.

“I’m hungry but I don’t want to leave,” I speak after a moment to his amusement. 

“We don’t have to eat just yet,” he says, leaning his head up to capture my lips. 

He kisses me delicately now, softly pressing his mouth against mine. 

“Your lips feel like silk,” he whispers, sounding as intoxicated as I feel. 

“Because yours are so rough,” I tease him, lightly biting at his bottom lip. 

“I like you like this,” he decides, sitting up and running his hands along my face. 

I stare down at him, feeling my face heat up as I take him in like this, his face sleepy and his hair tousled. The most stripped down I’ve seen him. 

“What?” he asks me as I blush harder, my eyes avoiding his. 

“You’re beautiful,” I answer. 

I look into his eyes to see them light up, making my heart jump gleefully. 

“So are you.”

I feel butterflies in my stomach while I lay back as he kisses me, cupping my face in his hands. 

“And you’re right,” he speaks after a moment. “We’re staying here for a while until we’re starving and have to go out.”

Once we’ve dragged ourselves out of bed and gotten dressed, we make our way downstairs to the restaurant to have breakfast. It’s calm, and way less crowded. As if it were a resort rather than a high end nightclub. Everyone is dressed casually, though even their pants and sweaters look more expensive than my rent. The smell of toast and syrup is thick in the air while everyone sips from long glasses of mimosas and eating plates of crazy extravagant breakfasts. 

Poe leads me over to a table after signaling to one of the waitresses. I notice Vera sitting at one of the tables, looking over some kind of paperwork. Her hair is still pinned up in that very proper looking French twist. 

She raises her eyes over the fancy spectacles she’s wearing once Poe and I walk over to an empty table. 

“What are you feeling?” he asks me, handing me a menu while the waitress comes back to hand some kind of envelope to him. 

I open the menu to see a bunch of fancy names I don’t recognize. Some of them I don’t think are even in English. And on top of that, there are no pictures, so I don’t even have a hint. 

“What is this stuff?” I ask him quietly as he starts looking through things in the envelope. 

“Huh?” he asks, glancing up at me. 

“Poe.”

We both turn to see Vera standing over our table, her glasses in her hands as she stares down at Poe with her sharp eyes. 

“Good morning, Vera. Everything alright?” 

“Can we speak in the office?” she asks in her no nonsense tone. 

They make eye contact, and Poe’s expression soon matches hers as something is silently communicated between the two of them. 

“I’m actually in the middle of something, but we can talk after,” he replies to her, quickly hiding the expression that had come over his face. 

Her eyes glance at me before she nods at him, walking back off to the table she was at, gathering up her things and heading to the far side of the restaurant, where there is a small door that, I’m supposing, leads to the office she was talking about. 

“The Eggs Benedict is pretty good,” he tells me, as if we hadn’t been interrupted at all. “Or even the Honey Almond Polenta. I know everything sounds really fancy and disgusting, but it’s all normal stuff, like cereal, French toast, and muffins and all that. Just kind of… all mashed together.” 

“You should have pictures on the menu,” I suggest, my eyes still scanning the list of bizarre names. “I don’t know what’s what on here.” 

He smiles widely at me, as if I’d just said the funniest thing. 

“I never even thought of that,” he admits as the waitress comes back again, placing a mug of steaming coffee and a plate of normal sunny side up eggs and toast in front of him.

I gawk at him as he casually picks up the crispy, buttered bread slice and brings it to his mouth as he continues glancing over the paper from the envelope. 

His eyes look over the paper at me as he guiltily chews his toast and I raise my eyebrows pointedly. 

“Look, when you’ve had everything on the menu and have eaten breakfast here more than a million times, you get tired of the specialties,” he explains as I shake my head. “If you really just want something simple, I can certainly ask them to-”

“No, no,” I insist, picking up the menu again and trying to hide my smile. “I’ll have the… the Meat Quiche,” I decide, picking the first thing my eyes land on that I can pronounce. 

He nods slowly, shaking his head, before signaling over another waitress. 

“Can we get one Meat Quiche and a dish of Cinnamon Bun Scones please?” 

I end up being very grateful that Poe ordered those scones because the Quiche makes me gag, so I end up having to eat half the dish of sticky, frosting slathered pastries for breakfast. 

“I wish I could spend the day with you, but it sounds like Vera has some important business. On our day off.” 

“I understand,” I assure him as I stare out at the slowly vanishing city while Poe drives me back to town. 

“But I will be picking you up tonight at six for dinner,” he confirms. “Club is closed, and we’ll have practically the entire place to ourselves. Most of the hotel guests check out on Sundays, so it’s the emptiest the place will ever be.” 

I smile excitedly to myself, wondering how in the hell I’m going to be able to get through the day waiting for tonight. 

“I mean, I’d keep you around all day if I could, but I don’t think you’d be too interested sitting around listening to a bunch of business meetings.”

“Probably not,” I chuckle in agreement, secretly knowing I really wouldn’t mind. I mostly spend my life sitting and saying nothing anyway. 

Once we pull up in front of the boarding house, I slowly unbuckle my seatbelt, feeling weird about having to return to real life for a few hours. 

“Um… so-”

“I’ll be back for you tonight,” he tells me, as if he feels he has to promise me. He reaches over to turn my face back to him, leaning over to touch his lips against mine for a brief moment. 

His other hand drops down to my thighs, sliding up between my legs and making me press myself back against the seat of the car as I gasp against his lips. 

My hand reaches up to touch the side of his face, but he pulls away, his eyes looking past me toward the house. 

“You’d better go in,” he tells me, sitting back in his seat. “We’re starting to get an audience.” 

I turn around to glance back at the front window of the house that looks into the living room. I see the curtain moving and someone walking away. 

“Jess,” I whisper, rolling my eyes. “Sorry, they’re… very nosy sometimes.” 

“It’s ok. I’ll see you soon?” 

“Yeah,” I nod. “Um, good luck with all of your… business meetings.” 

“Well, if I don’t die of boredom, hopefully I’ll be able to give you an amazing night.” 

He kisses me once more on the cheek before I reluctantly get out of the car and start walking toward the house. 

I don’t look back at him as he drives off, feeling lightheaded. 

I’m ready to confront Jess, who I know was probably peeping out the window at us, once I enter through the front door, but I’m shocked when I see Rose standing by the stairs.

She turns toward me slowly, her hand on the railing, looking as if she had been trying not to cry. 

“Hey,” I greet her, unsure of what to say, feeling fear and guilt shoot through me when I see how upset she is. 

“Hi,” she replies, her voice sounding slightly hoarse. 

What am I supposed to do? Do I apologize? Do I explain myself?

“I didn’t know… are you and Poe… how long…” She struggles to find the right question as I feel a swell of remorse.

“It just… it kind of happened.”

She nods, her eyes blinking rapidly, still refusing to look at me. 

“Rose…” 

“You knew how I felt about you,” she speaks suddenly, to my surprise. Her eyes look angry now, hurt. “Why didn’t you tell me?” 

“Rose, I…” 

I what? I did keep this a secret from her. But why? I was leading her on, humiliating her.

“Am I the only one who doesn’t know? Does Rey know, and Jess? Does everyone know but me?!” 

I don’t answer her. I just stare at the ground, feeling sick with guilt. I know how she’s feeling. 

“I was going to tell you, eventually-”

“You know, I’m not some fragile little love sick puppy. You could have told me that you weren’t interested in me, instead of letting me think you…” 

She stops, shaking her head.

“Nevermind. It’s fine, don’t worry about it.” 

“Rose, please, I’m sorry!” I try calling after her worriedly as she turns sharply and marches up the stairs. “I didn’t mean to…” 

I watch helplessly as I hear her rush down the hall and slam her bedroom door closed. 

My good mood is left completely forgotten as nothing but guilt surges through me while I stand, dumbfounded by the front door, feeling more terrible than I think I’ve felt in years.

I realize Rose must feel embarrassed, like I’ve led her on for all this time to make her look like a fool when I knew I didn’t like her. On top of that, I’ve always been rather rude to her, which was my asshole way of telling her I wasn’t interested in her. 

I end up sitting on the couch until Rey comes downstairs, looking overjoyed at first when she sees me, but then worried when she notices my expression. 

“Finn, what is it?” she asks, rushing over to sit beside me, grabbing my hand. “Are you alright? Did something happen?” 

“I’m ok,” I shake my head slowly, staring at my knees. “I’m just… Poe just dropped me off, and… Rose saw us…” 

I don’t have to explain anymore. 

“Was she upset?” she asks, her voice softening. 

“Of course she was upset. Rey, I feel terrible-”

“Finn, you can’t do anything about it. It isn’t your fault you don’t feel the same way.”

“But you were right, I should have told her. I should have told her way before, she thought I knew and I was leading her on.” 

Rey just shakes her head, putting her arm around me. 

“Finn, what’s done is done. You can’t go back and do anything differently. You apologized?”

“Of course.” 

“Well then, we’ll just have to wait until she forgives you. And she will.” 

I sigh, closing my eyes and leaning against her shoulder. 

Of course she’s right. But that doesn’t mean I still don’t feel sickened with myself. 

“We will take care of Rose. You need to focus on your date tonight.” 

“How did you know about that?” I ask in confusion. “I didn’t even know about that until this morning. 

“Kylo told me. We were talking on the phone just now. Finn, he’s so sweet, he calls me practically every morning-”

“How did _he_ know?”__

_ _“Poe told him. Apparently there was supposed to be a meeting tonight, but Poe rescheduled because he wants to spend the evening with you.” _ _

_ _Instead of feeling the flutter of excitement at these words I should be feeling, all I can think about is how Vera also really wanted to talk to Poe this morning. _ _

_ _“He sure goes through a lot of business meetings,” I mutter to myself. _ _

_ _“It’s a big business, I guess. Anyway, what are you going to be wearing tonight? You know once Jess hears about this, she’s going to want to dress you up-”_ _

_ _“Do not tell Jess about this,” I plead. _ _

_ _“Do you need to go shopping? I’ll buy you anything you need, it can be an early birthday present.”_ _

_ _“I actually… I have something,” I reply, remembering the outfit Poe had gotten me at the mall, seemingly forever ago. _ _

_ _“Oh, is that so? And from the way you’re blushing, I’m guessing you have an incredibly sexy something for tonight?”_ _

_ _“Shut up,” I try to stifle my grin, feeling my face heat up even more. _ _

_ _“Listen, I have to go to work in a couple hours, so you have to show me before I leave.” _ _

_ _“Ok,” I groan. “But we’re not having a whole cheerful fashion show while Rose is up there feeling awful.” _ _

_ _“Kay and Jess will stay with Rose, you and I will get you ready for tonight.”_ _


	15. Chapter 15

I try being excited about tonight, but as soon as we discreetly walk past Rose’s closed door, I feel like even more of an asshole. Kaydel and Jessika are both in there with her, and Rey goes in for a moment before walking back into my room once I’ve gotten dressed. 

“She’s ok,” Rey assures me as I sit on the bed,slipping my beat up converse back on and realizing how horrible they look with these clothes. “She’s more angry than upset, but the girls are keeping her distracted. I think she’ll honestly be over it by tomorrow, but she’ll pretend she’s still mad, you know how she is.” 

“So I’m assuming I should stay out of her way until next week, just to be safe,” I respond, standing up slowly. 

“Oh my God,” Rey smiles in astonishment as she looks me over in my shiny black jeans, button down shirt and light grey jacket. “Finn, you look amazing! How did I not know you had this getup, and why in the world haven’t you worn it before?” 

“That’s kind of a weird story…” 

“Well, you are gorgeous. Poe is going to be knocked off his feet. I, however, have to get to work, so I will see you tonight…” 

Her eyes narrow at my expression. 

“Unless you’re not going to be here. Finn, are you staying the night with him again?” 

“Rey, I’ve never missed a single day of school my entire college career, I think I’ll be ok if I miss my morning class tomorrow.” 

She takes a moment to stare at me, looking flabbergasted. 

“I have never seen this side of you,” she sighs in wonder. “What has Poe Dameron done to you?

“Never mind, I don’t need the details,” she decides, once she sees me begin to smile again. “Just please be careful and come home at a decent hour tomorrow.” 

She pulls me toward her, kissing me on the forehead, before turning on her heel and speeding off towards her room to get ready for work. 

Poe picks me up at six o’clock on the dot, pulling up in a shiny white Porsche this time. 

I stand up from where I’ve been sitting on the steps since four thirty, since I had nothing better to do, and slowly walk up to the vehicle, wondering just how many cars Poe Dameron owns. 

“You’re certainly a vision,” he admires as he steps out from around the front of the car, his eyes sweeping over me eagerly. “Did you dress up just for me?”

“You bought me the clothes, I might as well wear them,” I reply as he curls an arm around my waist, pulling me forward to softly press his lips to mine before turning and opening the passenger door. 

“I’m glad I did,” he acknowledges, his dark eyes carefully eyeing me as I step into the car. 

Once he gets inside and starts off down towards the city, he reaches over and takes my hand in his, casually holding it the whole way, as if we’ve been doing this for years. 

It makes my stomach do flips. 

“You look troubled,” he observes once we’ve driven away from my street. “Something on your mind?” 

There’s a million things on my mind troubling me, but I come up with one that’s particularly bothersome. 

“I made a mistake.” 

“Oh?” he responds curiously, his eyebrows raising in interest. “Anything I can do to help?”

“I don’t think so. Unless you can turn back time and stop me from being a complete dick.” 

He laughs loudly at my sudden vulgarity, glancing over at me for a moment. 

“I really hurt someone,” I answer his unasked question. “A friend. Now I’m afraid I just ruined everything between us.” 

“A friend?” 

He’s quiet for a moment, and I peek over at him to see that he seems to be trying to piece something together in his head. 

“This wouldn’t happen to be the friend who was enjoying the show we put on in the car earlier today, would it?” 

I don’t have to answer him as I sink up against the comfortable seat, closing my eyes in humiliation. 

“You know I’m not clueless,” he continues. “I knew Rose liked you. I think everyone did.” 

“Exactly, and I never discouraged it,” I vent, irritated again at my stupidity. 

“That’s not really your job, Finn. I mean, it’s not like you kissed her, or took her out, or told her you liked her too, right?”

“No, but I could of-”

“Finn,” he huffs, sounding authoritative in a way that makes me shut my mouth and pay attention. “Do you realize how fucked up this world would be if we were allowed to constantly go back in time and fix stupid mistakes? People would be doing it everyday. Believe me, I’ve had more than a few major misdeeds in my life. And sitting there wishing you could go back in time is about as useful as wishing for the sky to start raining money. It’s just not gonna happen.” 

I grin a bit at his odd life lesson, but I take in his words seriously. I’ve never considered how truly un-useful it is to wish I could go back and do things differently, as if the world would magically allow it all of a sudden. 

“Sure, you could have done things differently, but you’re your own man, Finn. You can’t spend your time trying to please everyone.” 

Says the man who owns a nightclub aimed to please the largest majority possible.

“Poe, I think you have a lot of secretly genius advice,” I praise him, already feeling the weight on my chest beginning to lift ever so slightly. 

He curls his fingers tighter around mine as he continues down the road. 

“I have lived a pretty long life for a man of my age,” he replies, his voice quieter, as if he were talking more to himself than to me. 

The club is completely vacant when we arrive, since it’s a Sunday and they’re closed. All the lights are out, aside from a few lines of bulbs glowing above the front doors. 

Poe pulls up to the front curb so fast, I think he’s going to scrape the sixty thousand dollar car against the concrete. 

One of the black suited men takes the keys from Poe as soon as we’re out of the car and heading up to the club. 

“I’ve reserved the entire place for us tonight,” Poe sighs, throwing his arm around me as we enter the strangely silent, but still lit up dance club. 

“Oh, how kind of you,” I smile sarcastically. 

The door to the theater is opened, and that too is eerily vacant, only dim lights from the chandeliers and at the foot of the stage lighting the large room. 

The restaurant is fully lit up, but there are only a few customers here, the ones who must be staying in the hotel. 

“You’re table’s been prepared, just as you asked,” the hostess smiles brightly at us as we enter. 

“Thank you very much,” Poe grins back at her, before leading me all the way to the back of the room. 

The few groups of people that are here all turn their heads as we walk by, no doubt because Poe has very noticeably wrapped his arm around my waist as he guides me toward a large booth that is much too large for just two people. 

A small black painted wall hides this table away so that it’s out of view from the rest of the restaurant. The table is made of the same impossibly smooth brown wood, except looking as if it could fit at least five people around at the booth that circles it.

The only light comes from a small lamp above the table, softly illuminating the hidden area with a dull golden glow. 

“The best table in the house,” Poe assures me as I slide into the booth, immediately noticing how the wall hiding us from view also blocks practically all other noise in the restaurant. “And don’t worry, I’ve already ordered for us. Food should be here any minute now.” 

“Should I be worried?” I ask him as he sits beside me, shrugging out of his fancy dress coat and setting it beside him on the seat. 

“No!” he replies in mock offense. “When have I ever disappointed you?” 

“I’m kidding,” I grin, rolling my eyes. “I trust you.”

“Good. Because you’re in for the best food you’ve ever tasted.”

I didn’t realize it until the feast is served to us by a seemingly excessive amount of waiters, but once the sight and aroma of fresh green beans, grilled steak and chicken, and creamy pesto hits me, I realize I haven’t eaten a thing since breakfast. 

Without asking what’s supposed to be for me and what’s for him, I just dig in, my stomach leading the way as I stab my fork into whatever colorful, steaming entree looks the best. 

I realize I’m probably making a fool of myself in front of Poe, yet again, but I can’t help myself. 

“I respect that you’re not a man of many words once food’s on the table,” Poe tells me as he casually takes a bite of a green bean. “If the meal’s any good, it should be pretty silent once everyone’s eating it, wouldn’t you say?” 

“Mm hm,” I agree, finishing off my second helping of pesto pasta. 

It stays pretty quiet for the rest of dinner, with Poe mostly seeming to be endlessly amused with how hungry I am. 

Just as I’m about to nervously ask Poe what we’re going to do with the rest of the evening, two tall glasses filled to the brim with chocolate and vanilla ice cream are brought out, topped with an intricate design of whipped cream and chocolate syrup with bright red cherries perched on top of it all. 

“Ah, finally,” Poe claps his hands together as the desserts are set in front of us. I just stare wide eyed at it, amazed at how perfect looking they somehow made it. “Ever seen one before?” he asks, chuckling at my reaction. 

“Only on tv,” I admit. 

My spoon cuts smoothly through the confection, and once I bring it to my lips, I’m in amazement once again at how something can actually taste every bit as delicious as it looks. 

“You look funny when you eat,” Poe says as I now begin charging through this course. 

“I do?” I ask after gulping down a bite. 

“You do. Do you always eat like you’ve been starving to death?” 

“You’re one to talk,” I reply, pointing my spoon at him. “Whenever we’re out in public and you’re eating a sandwich, you nearly take down the whole thing in three bites.”

“What?! Not true.” 

“True,” I nod, digging back into the sugary dessert. 

I shouldn’t be as nervous as I was last night, but my heart is still beating madly when Poe gets the key to the same room we were in, then takes me to the elevator up to the hotel rooms. 

In the back of my mind, all I’ve been thinking about is what he told me about his past. What he used to have to do. I wonder if he’d have to do these kinds of things for his… customers, in his line of work. Buy them dinner, charm them, make them feel like the only person in the entire world… 

“You don’t have to keep doing all of this for me,” I tell him as we walk down the hall toward the room from last night. 

“What do you mean?” he asks obliviously as he turns the key in the knob to open the door. 

“I mean you’re always… you always _do_ things for me.” __

_ _He laughs as he walks briskly into the room, tossing his jacket toward the chair and turning on the light before glancing back at me as I stand apprehensively in the doorway._ _

_ _“Isn’t that what someone is supposed to do when they’re taking someone out on a date?”_ _

_ _“I don’t mean that, it’s just… you don’t have to feel like you have to… serve me or anything.” _ _

_ _He takes a few steps, stopping in front of the window as he undoes his tie, staring out at the glistening city lights. _ _

_ _“Is this about the sex?” _ _

_ _I really didn’t want to say this flat out, but it looks like I have no other choice now. _ _

_ _“Well… I guess, but-”_ _

_ _“You’re bothered by what I told you, aren’t you?” he asks, turning back towards me. “What I used to do.” _ _

_ _He sighs, his hands going to his hips. His eyes look as if he’s tread this ground before, and he really wishes I wouldn’t bring it all up again. _ _

_ _“Look, if it’s about anything you think I might have, I get myself tested every month, and I’ve never had anything. I can give you a copy of the most recent test results if you want, and I’ll keep on using a condom so that you’re comfortable-”_ _

_ _“It’s not about that,” I shake my head quickly, honestly not worried at all that Poe might give me any kind of disease. “It’s just… I don’t want to be a job for you. You don’t owe me anything, you don’t have to give me anything you don’t want to give…”_ _

_ _He moves closer to me as I speak before placing his arms on my shoulders, wrapping his hands around the back of my neck. _ _

_ _“You think I just see you as a client?” he questions in disbelief. “You think I’m some broken man who doesn’t know any better than to serve anyone I come into contact with?”_ _

_ _“That is not what I’m saying,” I insist, but he just smiles, shaking his head before silencing me with his lips on my mouth. _ _

_ _“I love you, Finn,” he tells me after pulling away and leaning his forehead against mine. _ _

_ _“What?” I ask in shock, my eyes wide in alarm as he pulls me into the room, yanking the door shut behind me. _ _

_ _“I love you,” he replies, as if it should be obvious._ _

_ _His hands go to my hips before sharply turning me around and pushing me up against the wall. _ _

_ _I breathe heavily as I place my hands flat against the pale, rigid wall as Poe’s hands move to the front of my jeans, quickly undoing them. _ _

_ _“You make me feel safe,” he whispers against my neck, as he pushes his body up against my back, his hand reaching down to undo his own pants. “All I want is you.” _ _

_ _A still stubborn part of me hesitates to believe him, but I ignore it. I just close my eyes, reaching down to my waist to grip his hand, feeling myself become wrapped up in him, sinking away from everything else. _ _

_ _I turn my head back and kiss him ferociously, causing him to lean back a bit in surprise, before his hand crawls along my chest, wrapping possessively around my throat, his fingers softly caressing the skin of my neck. _ _

_I love you too, Poe…___


	16. Chapter 16

The next four weeks are the best I’ve had in my life. It’s mostly a blur of parties, dinners, and sex if I’m to be honest. I can’t say I’d ever have predicted myself to be in a situation such as this, but I’m far from being bothered by it. 

I practically live at the club in these weeks. Tony and Gerold, the two gentlemen standing guard at the door, eventually know me well enough to just let me in after my third visit instead of getting Vera or Poe to come up and verify who I am. 

As soon as I’ve finished my classes or when I get off work, I make my way into the city, practically sprinting the whole way there, backpack and all, until Club Dameron melts into view, and my heart beats even quicker. 

I stay in Poe’s office to do my homework, which is surprisingly small and comfortably safe from the bustling noise outside. I then stick to Poe’s side the rest of the night, while he makes his rounds through the game room, the restaurant, and the theater, where I’m introduced to hundreds of the elite guests as his boyfriend. 

It honestly makes my head spin so much, that I don’t even have enough energy to be worried about meeting all these new people, much less the fact that they’re rich, upper class citizens who I’d otherwise never be able to even get a glance at, much less be introduced to. 

Whenever we’ve ended our meeting and Poe shuffles me away, he’ll always whisper to me some bizarre story that makes the people we just met with seem much less high class than they previously appeared. 

I hardly spend any time at the boarding house. I do make up with Rose, eventually. Jess and Kay still can’t talk to me much, since they want to be on her side, but I can tell they’re not seriously enraged with me. And Rose, despite obviously still being a bit hurt, at least speaks to me and can be in the same room with me while making some casual conversation. 

The only time I really see Rey is the one day a week I come back to trade out any clothes or things I need before going back to the club, or whenever I happen to catch her at the club herself when she’s with Kylo. They mostly go off on their own though, because I think Kylo would rather be with her alone than around tons of people.

She eventually disclosed to me that she too has lost her virginity. I suspected, because I saw them sneaking up to the hotel rooms more than once at that point. I try not to worry, not only because Poe has assured me there’s nothing there to worry about, but also because having this relationship with Kylo Ren seems to be making Rey extremely happy. And I know exactly what she’s feeling. 

On Wednesdays and Sundays, when the club is closed and Poe’s not working, he takes me out further into the city, usually to some kind of restaurant or party where I’d feel as if I were a zoo animal if I weren’t linked on Poe’s arm. I only have one decent outfit, and I can’t wear it everyday, so sometimes my normal clothes have to suffice. Until Poe takes me shopping once again, this time in the city where everything is fifty times more expensive and good looking. 

I know it’s pointless to protest when he buys me yet another set of clothes. And then another. 

I lose track of how many condos, penthouses, and galas we attend. They mostly consist of me staring wide eyed at everything, and Poe cracking jokes about how ridiculous most of these things are. But I can tell he loves them nonetheless. He loves the excitement, the crowds of people, the chance to speak with all kinds of exotic individuals with grand tales of how they made their money. All the while I feel as if I hardly have the right to even be there at all, but at the same time, all of this has started to make me finally feel like I’m a real person. I have a life, places to go, someone who loves me and isn’t someone I’ve known all my life, but somehow loves me anyway.

After the long, ever eventful nights are over, Poe will take me up the elevator, and into one of the empty hotel rooms, pre- setup with all of his preferences, consisting of the same sheets and bed style in every room we go into. 

We make love for hours every night, never getting bored with being completely connected to each other, as close as we can possibly get. 

It’s as if I’ve been transported to a peregrine dimension of pure sensations, when it’s just us alone, him running his hands and kissing over every inch of my body, whispering how much he loves me, how much he needs me, how long he’s waited to have me like this. It affects me even more when he makes the beautiful sounds of pleasure when I’m inside him, making my chest feel like it’s about to explode. 

I feel almost semi conscious when he caresses me, kisses me, has his mouth around me, or his fingers stroking roughly against my scalp. 

While I’m laying there with him after it all, curled up in his arms, or holding him while he rests his head against my chest, I feel nearly on the verge of sobbing. 

I never thought I could feel so loved, or love someone so much, it hurt.

“And… who are you again?” the well dressed, white haired man Poe had been talking to looks over to me, as if noticing me for the first time. 

I look to Poe immediately, unsure of what to say. No one at any of these gatherings has asked me anything directly before. Just questioned Poe who the “young man” accompanying him is. 

Poe opens his mouth, but then stops, looking at the ground a moment, then turning back to the man, twirling the glass of champagne in his hand. 

“This is my fiance,” he answers, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling me close to him as my eyes widen and I try to stop my jaw from falling open. “Finn Storm. We met at last year’s Naboo Gala. He’s new money, just landed a huge fortune in the spice mines in Kessel…”

I look rapidly between Poe and the man, unable to believe what I’m hearing. But the man seems to believe every word.

“Is that so?” he nods, his snobbish expression staying the same. “Yes, I… I think I may have heard of you…” 

I try not to gape in astonishment as I see Poe also trying to cover a laugh. 

“Yes, it was quite the talk last year, right Finn?”

Shit.

“Uh… oh yes,” I nod, quickly correcting my posture and sticking my nose up much in the way this man is. “I was quite successful in… the trade of spices…”

I don’t even know what spices he’s talking about and I also don’t think I’ve ever seen a picture of Kessel. 

Luckily, no one else asks about me, so Poe doesn’t continue with this horrifying charade. 

We’re at some big-time lawyer’s gathering at her penthouse in Coruscant, only about an hour from Canto Bight, and apparently the hottest party in the city at the moment. 

The penthouse is more of a plaza, definitely not somewhere someone would live. I doubt this lawyer spends any actual time here aside from the parties she throws. Everything is shiny, and glass windows make up for most of the walls, causing me to feel as if we’re in some kind of skyscraper, which discourages me from moving too close to any of the glass for fear of glancing down at the hundreds of feet below us. 

This party isn’t too much different than all the other ones I’ve been to with Poe this past month. There’s still fancy drinks that taste too sour, and the only food out is little horderves that are either little circles of meat or vegetables impaled in tiny toothpicks. 

Poe usually takes me out to eat a proper meal after we leave.

I begin wandering around on my own, as I usually do as Poe tries going around to every single guest at the party to talk with them. Being the introvert that I am, I get pretty tired after just meeting a handful of them, even if I don’t do any of the talking. 

Just as I’m trying to decipher what kind of tropical fruit seems to be stuck on the ends of these certain toothpicks I’m staring at, I feel a pair of hands suddenly grab me around the waist, pulling me into a small hallway that immediately shuts out a bunch of noise from the chattering guests.

“Poe!” I whisper harshly as he begins laughing silently, almost to the point where I think he’s not breathing. 

“Oh shit, can you believe that guy we fooled?” he manages out, tears of laughter forming in his eyes. “And I thought some of the attendees at _my_ club were idiots!”__

_ _“I can’t honestly say I’m surprised,” I admit as he practically drapes himself over me, and I can tell he’s had a bit much to drink tonight. _ _

_ _“What’ve you been doing all this time, my love?” he asks, his face stroking against mine. _ _

_ _“Looking for something to eat,” I reply, nervously looking back out into the party to make sure no one is watching. “I’m starving, and all they have is those stupid tiny little squares of cheese and fruits.”_ _

_ _He laughs drunkenly against me, his arms hugging around my torso as I smile, trying to stand him up straight. _ _

_ _“I’m serious!” I insist. “We’ve been here three hours, and they don’t even have bread! Or something bigger than a sugar cube.” _ _

_ _“I think it might be time to go soon,” Poe replies in a singsong voice as his hands travel down to my pants, his fingers beginning to work quickly to undo them._ _

_ _“No no no no,” I shake my head, quickly taking his hands in mine as he leans forward to suckle against my neck. “Poe, we are in a room with many other very rich and intimidating people…”_ _

_ _“Are you hard?” he asks, his voice startling me in it’s not so subtle volume as his hand tries to worm its way into my pants. “Finn, I’m going to tell you… I’m so fucking hard for you right now, it’s driving me crazy-”_ _

_ _“Ok,” I laugh loudly, trying to cover up his voice as I notice a long necked woman sneering over at us suspiciously from all the way across the room. “Poe, these are things we can… discuss in the privacy of a hotel room…”_ _

_ _“Let’s go,” he suddenly encourages, yanking away from me and dragging me further down the hallway, toward the bathroom. “Come on, I want to show you something.”_ _

_ _I’ve known him long enough at this point to know exactly what he wants to “show me” judging from the mischievous look on his face. _ _

_ _Regardless, I hesitantly allow him to lead me into the bathroom, making sure to lock the door once we’re inside. _ _

_ _“You really could care less about your reputation, could you?” I ask as he slams me up against the wall, his lips attacking as much of my body as they can as he slowly slides down onto his knees. _ _

_ _“I was a fucking prostitute, Finn,” he answers as he finishes undoing my pants. “I have no reputation. I’m just fucking rich. Like Batman.”_ _

“I think maybe we should just go,” I try to convince him, even as he is taking me out of my pants and I feel my legs start to shake. “You’re really drunk and I think… we’d be a lot more… comfortable back at… _fuck_.” __

_ _ _ _ _ _I lose any and all concentration when I feel his lips start to surround me, one hand gently rubbing me to arousal. _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I think we should do this first,” he informs me before taking me completely in his mouth, making my head practically collide against the unforgiving white tile wall. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I bite my lip hard, especially when I hear voices down the hall, and the sound of footsteps getting closer. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _My hand curls in Poe’s dark locks as his mouth moves up and down my length, and I try not to cringe when I hear someone outside trying the doorknob. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _To my horror, Poe begins laughing, his mouth still locked around me, causing me to sharply tug at his hair, in an attempt to tell him to shut up as I turn and stare worriedly at the jiggling handle. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh,” he grins, pulling himself off me and staring up at me with those hungry eyes he always gives me. “You wanna get kinky do you?”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I mouth at him to be quiet as I hear whoever’s outside suddenly still, probably listening for the voice they had just heard. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“That’s alright,” Poe continues, his eyes growing wide in what is meant to be an innocent stare, while he drops to his hands and knees, still grinning devilishly. “I can be your good little boy, Finn.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Oh my God,” I groan to myself, feeling blood rush to my face. Poe just continues smiling, as if he knows how much embarrassment he’s causing. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“What do you want to do to me?” he asks, dragging his hands back up my body as he stands up, his voice growing louder, even more so echoing off against the tiled bathroom. “Do you want to punish me? Do you want to tie me up and- mmph!” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I quickly turn him around, clamping my hand down over his mouth with one hand and locking my arm around his waist with the other, my ears trained towards the other side of the door, my heart pounding as I wait for whoever’s standing there to get the hell out of here._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Poe just reaches back and starts caressing his hand along the back of my neck, leaning and rutting against my body as I try holding him still for one blessed minute. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Thankfully, whoever had been standing out there listening to Poe’s “dialogue”, begins slowly walking away after about half a minute of silence. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Finn,” Poe breathes after I release him and he dramatically dusts himself off. “I’ve decided it’s time for us to go. You are just entirely too frisky this evening, and I think I need to take you to bed.”_ _ _ _


	17. Chapter 17

“Finn, it feels like we’ve finally entered the next stage of our lives,” Rey cheers happily as she finishes putting on her mascara. “I feel like an adult now, don’t you?”

“Sure,” I nod, pulling on the black smooth-fabriced jacket Poe had got me. “We both have insanely rich boyfriends now.” 

“Oh come on, that’s not what I mean,” she laughs as I playfully shove her away from the mirror in the tiny bathroom so I can make sure I don’t look like a slob. “Just… isn’t it amazing to actually have a relationship to commit to? Like, we’re going on a double date now.”

“I wouldn’t exactly call this a double date,” I counter, letting her have the mirror once I’ve made sure I look presentable. “It’s just going to be us four, along with a crowd of other people, dancing and drinking with everyone else.”

After seeing less of Poe than usual this week on account of a slew of business meetings he had with Vera and Kylo, he expressed he wished to have a more relaxed Saturday than usual, and decided he, I, Rey, and Kylo should all just relax at the bar tonight instead of putting up the usual racket of entertaining all the guests. 

I thought this sounded like a fantastic idea, mostly because I want to be sure Poe isn’t running himself ragged. I know he enjoys all the attention and excitement, but I imagine there’s only so much even he can take. 

“Nevertheless,” Rey sighs, stepping back and fluffing her hair slightly, “I think this marks a milestone in our lives.”

“You’re very dramatic,” I inform her as she snatches up her black clutch from the counter and struts out into the hall beside me. She has on a pair of red and tan wedges, smooth leather pants that hug tightly to her body, a glittery silver crop top, and a large pink flower pinned in her hair. 

“Yeah, well, you’re not dramatic enough,” she replies as we head down the stairs, toward the door. 

I toll my eyes, linking my arm with hers as we head out the front door. 

“I just don’t know if Kylo and I will-”

I stop in the middle of my thought, my mouth hanging open as Rey and I stop dead in our tracks, staring wide eyed at what is sitting out on the street in front of the house. 

A large, shiny, black limousine is parked along the curb, the passenger door already being held open by a man dressed as a chauffeur. 

“Dramatic?” Rey asks. 

“I take it back,” I acknowledge. “Poe Dameron will always be more dramatic than any of us.”

I’ve never ridden in a limo before, but I’ve seen a million on tv. So the lit up, black leather interior of the vehicle is pretty much what I expected. It doesn’t lesson our excitement though as Rey and I slide into the seats, immediately going to the mini bar to pour ourselves some sparkling fruit punch. They even have speakers along the walls that begin blasting music. 

I was worried at first that once we started moving, Rey and I would slide right off the seats. But somehow, the ride is probably the smoothest I’ve ever taken. I will never understand how they manage to move these things at such a perfect speed. 

The club is crowded as always on Saturday nights, but the limo driver parks in a place that seems to be reserved before helping Rey and I out and escorting us to the front door, past the line of course. 

Tony and Gerald let us right in and soon we’re in the midst of booming music and excited people bustling throughout the darkened dance club. 

Rey keeps ahold of my hand as she drags me through the crowd towards the bar, where we both immediately start scanning for our boyfriends. 

I’m about to rush forward when my eyes finally land on Poe and Kylo sitting in the crowd of people, talking amongst themselves. But then I notice the expression on Poe’s face. 

He looks worried. Or more like, terrified. 

He’s turned only slightly toward me, so I can only see half of his face as he speaks very quickly and worriedly to Kylo, who has his back to me so I can’t see his reaction to whatever Poe is saying to him. 

I only glimpse this for a moment, but I know something is wrong. 

“There they are!” Rey exclaims only seconds later, pulling me forward suddenly as I try not to stumble over my unwilling feet. I guess I’m entirely too nosy if my first instinct is always to hang back and see if I can hear what people are saying, rather than going right up to them. 

Poe’s face, of course, immediately switches into his bright, million dollar smile once he sees us. 

“You made it!” he greets us, standing up from the stool he’d been sitting at, while Kylo turns slightly to face us. 

By the way Poe practically jumps into my arms and the scent of fruit laced alcohol on his breath, I can tell he’s already had a few drinks. 

“I’ve missed you,” he tells me quietly before taking my face in his hands and pulling me into a kiss. 

“You saw me yesterday,” I remind him as he drags me over to the bar, where Kylo has stood up and seems to have gently embraced Rey in his arms, one of his hands slowly stroking the side of her face as he tells her something quietly. 

“I know, but I hardly saw you all week,” he groans as I sit down next to him at the bar and he waves the bartender over. “Too many business meetings, too much stress…”

The bartender brings over two martini glasses filled with bright orange liquid and puts one in front of both of us.

“I don’t know about you, but I need a break from it all,” he sighs, picking up the glass and bringing it to his lips, tipping a significant amount in his mouth while Rey reaches over to where Kylo’s martini was sitting and dunks the remainder of it down her throat, much to my shock. 

“Come on,” she smiles as Kylo stares at her in admiration. She grabs his hand and runs off toward the crowded dance floor. 

I gawk after them until Poe takes another large swig of his drink then stands up, ready to follow them. 

I glance back and forth for a moment between Poe and the drink in front of me. 

After a while, I decide I’m really sick and tired of worrying about everyone and everything. 

I choke back a hefty amount of whatever drink was put in front of me, and stand up to follow Poe over to the dance floor, feeling slightly dizzy for a moment after drinking and standing up so fast. 

Poe grabs ahold of my arm before I can fall backwards and leads me straight into the mess of people. 

I thought perhaps we’d stay and dance on the outside, but Poe of course fights his way until we’re right in the middle, having to keep a firm hold of me the whole way when my feet want to plant themselves into the ground. 

My eyes only open once Poe’s stopped pulling me along, and I see we’re right in the middle of the chaos. At first, everyone is slamming up against me, knocking me this way and that. But Poe places his hands on my arms, drawing me closer to him. 

Soon I can only feel him, his body pressed to mine as he starts moving to the beat of the music, rubbing up against me. 

I can’t help but glance around at first, worried about how this display looks to people. But a lot of people are doing the same thing. 

He reaches his hand toward my face, turning my head to look back at him. 

I try to copy his movements and move to the beat of the song, but I have about as much rhythm as a turtle. 

“I can’t dance!” I call out to him, realizing I maybe didn’t have to shout so loud since we’re so close to each other. 

He just smiles, touching his forehead against mine. 

“You don’t have to dance, just move,” he tells me. 

I’m not sure what this means, so I just let him hold me against him and move for the both of us. 

After a while, it becomes easier once I see how he’s doing it. And it’s easier when there are songs with slower beats. 

Eventually, Rey and Kylo appear beside us, and I quickly push away from Poe, feeling embarrassed. 

Kylo quietly slides away while Rey takes my hands, her laughter silent under the bellowing music. I dance with her and Poe, finding myself beginning to laugh along with her. 

I eventually get the hang of dancing. It’s rather hard not to when one is forced, but it’s not nearly as awkward as I always assumed. Plus, the songs they’re playing are actually pretty catchy, and Rey and Poe have me jumping and singing along with them for some time. 

I find myself becoming almost intoxicated by the excitement, and the music, and all the people. Soon enough, I couldn’t care less if Poe grabbed me and started taking my clothes off in front of all these people. In fact, thinking of that scenario makes me rather eager. 

After what feels like hours of dancing, the three of us go back to the bar, where more space has cleared up, enough for us to join where Kylo is sitting, waiting for us. 

“I love you so much,” Poe expresses, practically falling into my lap once we sit down. 

“Thank you,” I laugh, as he kisses along the side of my face, while I glance over to see that Rey and Kylo are in a similar position. 

“I want you with me all the time,” Poe continues as I struggle to take a sip of my drink with him nearly climbing on top of me. 

“I’m pretty much here all the time, so-”

“I want you to live with me. I want you to move out of your boarding house and live with me.” 

I’m still for a very long moment. I choose not to respond, instead trying to clear my head, telling myself over and over that Poe has had a lot to drink this evening and is no doubt very… excitable. 

“Is Vera in charge of the show tonight?” Kylo asks Poe once he finally peels himself away from me. 

“She sure is,” Poe nods, beginning to nurse a fancy looking margarita. “And I’m not going in there. When I said I’m taking the night off, I meant it.” 

“Yeah, you and me both,” Kylo agrees, taking a swig of the whiskey he’d been sipping at most of the night. 

_Why would Poe want me to live with him? He hardly knows me. At least not enough to want to live with me? I don’t even know where he lives!___

_ _“What time is it?” Rey asks, glancing around as if there would be a clock just sitting on one of the walls. “It feels like we’ve been here hours, but I don’t-”_ _

_ _We all snap our heads to where the slightly muffled, yet audible booming noise had sharply rung out in the direction of the theater room._ _

_ _I’m confused for a moment, thinking it must have been someone’s car outside or some kind of explosion. _ _

_ _Everyone else at the bar who heard it slowly turn back to their conversations once nothing else happens after a few moments. _ _

_ _“What the hell was that?” Kylo asks, standing up from where he was sitting. _ _

_ _“Did it come from outside?” Poe asks, beginning to stand up as well as I continue to rationalize that everything must be ok, because everyone else here is carrying on dancing and drinking as usual. _ _

_ _“Stay here, I’ll check it out,” Kylo says quickly and quietly, as if he meant only Poe to hear. “Rey, I’ll be right back, stay where you are.” _ _

_ _“Kylo, what’s going on!?” Rey calls after him as he rushes off into the theater. _ _

_ _“Is everything ok?” I ask Poe, worry rising quickly in my chest. _ _

_ _“I don’t know,” Poe shakes his head, his eyes staring off to where Kylo had hurried towards._ _

_ _I want to ask him about what he and Kylo had been talking about before we arrived, if perhaps that has anything to do with whatever’s going on. _ _

_ _Poe turns back to the counter, his fingers closing around his drink once again, bringing it nervously to his slightly worried looking face. _ _

_ _My hand instinctively reaches out, stopping him from taking another sip. He stares at me as I remove the glass from his hand, placing it back down on the counter. _ _

_ _I may not drink that much, but I do know enough to know you’re supposed to do it for fun, not when you’re stressed. _ _

_ _After a few more minutes of us sitting in silence, waiting for Kylo to return, we all nearly jump out of our seats when we see one of the black suited men striding rapidly over toward us from the theater, Kylo following close behind him. _ _

_ _The expressions they wear do not give me much hope that everything is ok. _ _

_ _“Mr. Dameron, we’re going to need you out in the lot,” the man speaks in a deep, hushed tone to Poe, but he’s already stood up before the man completes the sentence. _ _

_ _“I’m taking you home,” Kylo says to Rey, brushing straight past us and going to her, taking her arm and pulling her away from the bar. _ _

_ _He stops only for a second, his eyes looking straight at me, which almost makes me jump, and then to Poe. _ _

_ _“He needs to go home, Poe.” _ _

_ _“What’s wrong?” Rey asks him as he begins to hurriedly lead her to the exit. _ _

_ _“I’ll tell you in the car.” _ _

_ _I stand up, looking between Poe and Rey, completely at a loss at what to do. _ _

_ _“Finn, can you wait here a moment, I’ll be back,” Poe tells me, not even looking back as the man leads him toward the theater. _ _

_ _I stay still, my eyes following after them until they’ve disappeared through the large door. I look back to see Kylo and Rey leave out the front door, and that’s when I start moving forward, following the direction Poe had gone. _ _

_ _I’ve been here enough now that I’m allowed past the guarded door into the theater without question, and from there, it’s easy to stay hidden amongst the crowd of people gathered in here for this evening’s show. _ _

_ _It seems whatever’s going on out in the parking lot hasn’t affected anything in here. People are sitting, laughing, drinking, cheering at the display on stage, which tonight consists of women and men dressed as secretaries and office managers, gyrating about the stage in divulging costumes. _ _

_ _I pause for a moment however when I notice Vera standing off to the side of the stage, where the live band playing. _ _

_ _Her auburn hair is pinned up as always, only a single curl laying neatly down her shoulder. She has on a long sleeved black mesh shirt matched with a shiny black corset._ _

_ _Her lips are almost a perfect straight line, her hand resting tensely on her hip, her legs angled in a way that pulls at her long black skirt. Her other hand holds the cigarette she’s seen with every night, only now she’s just holding it perfectly still, as if she were posing for a portrait._ _

_ _Her petrifying gaze is scanning scrutinizingly over the crowd, her eyes being the only part of her body that seem to be moving at all. She seems to be making sure everything is going along as normal, not a single guest out of place. Her face is pale, almost sick looking behind all the makeup when I look closer, as if she’d just seen a ghost. _ _

_ _In these past few weeks, I’ve had enough interactions with Vera Gorski to know she’s not one to fright from anything. In fact, she’s quite frightening herself. But as my gaze moves in a bit closer, I can see the hand holding her cigarette quivering, ever so slightly, the smoke billowing from the end of the instrument wavering as it enters the air. _ _

_ _She looks absolutely terrified. _ _

_ _I peel my attention away from her just in time to catch Poe nodding at something two men guarding the door had said to him before they turn and open one of the double doors, but only enough to let Poe and the man barely slip through before shoving it quickly closed again. _ _

_ _I slide easily through the crowd of tables until I arrive at the double doors, not really knowing if the two men are going to let me through or not. _ _

_ _“I’m sorry Mr. Storm,” one of them starts, quick to block me off from even looking at the door handles. “You’re going to have to use the other exit tonight.”_ _

_ _“I just want to talk to Poe,” I explain, stepping forward still, much to their chagrin. _ _

_ _“I’m sorry,” he repeats as the man next to him steps up as well, looking as if he’s ready to knock me out if necessary. “This exit is closed off for the night.” _ _

_ _I shake my head, taking a step back._ _

_ _“I don’t understand,” I sigh in frustration, “what’s going on?”_ _

_ _“I’m afraid you’re going to have to vacate-”_ _

_ _“Let him through.”_ _

_ _The three of us all look over at where the icy sharp voice had spoken out. _ _

_ _Vera stands almost right behind me, practically in the same position I just saw her in, as if she had just teleported right over here. Her cold gaze is on me, making me shiver nervously. _ _

_ _“But, Mr. Dameron gave us strict orders-”_ _

_ _“I said let him through,” she directs, her tone a bit louder as her eyes stay fixed on me. _ _

_ _There is now a flicker of anger in them, but also some small hint of pity. _ _

_ _“He deserves to know.”_ _

_ _She glances up at the two men pointedly, nodding her head slightly. _ _

_ _The two men, however unwillingly, begin to open the door, only just a crack as they’d done before, so that I have push myself through to get outside. _ _

_ _I quickly pull my hood up from the sweatshirt I luckily chose to wear under my jacket, and wrap my arms around myself once the night air hits me and I hear the door close quickly behind me once I’m standing at the top of the steps leading to this entrance. I gaze down at the array of fancy cars all lined up in the secret parking lot until my eyes land upon the small group gathered at the far end of the building, all staring at something up against the wall._ _

_ _I walk down the stairs, looking off to the opposite side of the parking lot where I now see more men in black suits working to block off the entry to the lot. My brows narrow in confusion as I wonder how people parked here are supposed to get out. _ _

_ _Once I’ve looked at every entrance and exit point to the parking lot, I see that there are men blocking off every single one with large metal gates that glint against the moonlight. _ _

_ _I’ve gotten down the stairs and begin walking toward the group of people huddled around whatever’s at the wall. As I get closer, I can tell Poe has his back facing me, while the other two men are on the other side, creating a makeshift circle around whatever they’re staring at. _ _

_ _For a moment, I think I should maybe call out to Poe, to let him know I’m here. Things seem a little tense, and I don’t know how any of them will react if I just walk on up to them. _ _

_ _But as I get closer, my footsteps grow slow as I’m able to see more clearly what they are all staring at. _ _

_ _There is someone lying on the ground. Some black mass that I can’t make out clearly until I stare at it for a moment, letting my eyes adjust in the dark. _ _

_ _It’s one of the guards. The black suit and shiny black dress shows are now clearly visible. _ _

_ _The blood splattered against the wall also becomes visible as I get closer. _ _

_ _The man laying splayed out on the ground has a bullet wound right in the middle of his head. The back of his head is hardly even there anymore, a mess of brain and flesh scattered on the lower wall, matching the bright red dots that look as if they were spray painted on the light colored wall of the building. _ _

_ _I turn away, feeling the alcohol, and everything I’ve eaten today threatening to come shooting right back up and add to the carnage decorating the lot. I feel myself begin to shake, my vision becoming a bit blurred while my breathing comes out in choppy gasps. _ _

_ _Poe turns quickly to look at me, his face petrified as I stare back at him in horror, looking back down at the grotesque scene, then back over at him. _ _

_ _I expect him to do something about it. Or say something. But all he does is look at me as if he doesn’t have a clue what to say, for the first time since I’ve known him._ _

_ _I wrench myself away from the sickening image before me, focusing my mind on nothing more than walking back to the door. _ _

_ _“Finn! Finn, wait!”_ _

_Up the stairs…. Through the door…. Walk through the club…. Then back out the exit… I can walk home._

_ _ _ _ _ _“Finn, please stop!” _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Poe’s voice is made small and distant in my head as I continue repeating the very clear and simple directions in my head._ _ _ _

_Up the stairs, through the door, through the club, out the door…_

“_Finn!_” __

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Poe grasps my shoulders, forcing me to a halt as he sharply turns me to face him. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“I’m sorry Finn, you shouldn't have seen that. This… this kind of thing can happen here, I didn’t think to warn you-”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I yank away from him, turning back to continue heading for the stairs, still feeling a nauseating chill crawling through my body, my heart feeling like it wants to pound through my ribcage. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

“Finn, _talk_ to me!” __

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I start running when he won’t stop following me. I don’t look back and I keep running until I’m up the stairs and at the door. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Mr. Dameron, this needs to be handled…” I hear one of the men call after Poe, I suppose when he starts going after me. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I push my way through the doors, nearly knocking one of the men over who are guarding it, but I just keep my head down, marching my way through the crowd of people as the two men at the doors rush to slam them shut again. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

I don’t want to know what happened. I don’t care what happened. I just want to get out of here and forget I ever came here. I don’t want anything to do with this place, I need to _get out_. __

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I’m almost to the door that will lead me out to the front of the club, when someone takes ahold of my arm, jerking me back so hard, my head scrambles and I’m slammed against the wall. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _The man standing in front of me, his hand still locked in a steel grip around my upper arm, grins down at me eagerly, as if he’d been waiting for me for a while._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I immediately recognize him as the elvish looking man from the first night I came here. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“So,” he smiles a slimy grin, his eyes sliding over me, “you must be Dameron’s little whore.” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I push roughly against him, trying to loosen his grip on me, but he just crushes my arm harder, shoving me into the wall again. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“We’ve seen you around here, you know,” he says quietly, leaning closer to me so that I now try sinking myself into the wall. “Always at his side. Don’t try to deny it.” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He thankfully leans away from me, looking me over again, this time in amusement._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Odd that he picked someone insignificant like you,” he muses, his fingers still digging into my arm so hard, I swear he’s trying to crack a bone. “I thought he would have gone for someone with a bit more _relevance_.”___ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He leans in close to me again, and I turn my head away, gritting my teeth in anger and fear as I try to twist my arm out of his grip, but I’m unable to move an inch. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Or are you paying him to fuck you? That’s what he’s used, isn’t it?” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Before I can react, the man is yanked back from me, his grasp finally vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I lean against the wall still, gazing in shock as Poe holds the man by the neck, where he had grasped him from, his other arm rearing back, before crashing forward, connecting with the man’s face so hard, the sound almost echoes through the large theater. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Any other activity in the room goes dead as the man topples to the floor, looking as surprised as I am. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _The look that is lingering in Poe’s eyes is none I’ve ever seen before. I’m frozen against the wall, the infurtated gaze flaming through Poe’s eyes sending a chill through me that paralyzes every inch of my body. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Get. The hell. Out of my club.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _His voice is just as terrifying, if not more. There isn’t a trace of the delightful, honey coated tone I’ve grown so used to. He sounds as if he wants to murder the man. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Two of the security guards rush over to haul the man up, ready to drag him out. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Poe steps closer and closer to the man until they’re practically nose to nose. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“If you ever touch him again, I will fucking kill you,” Poe speaks in a deep voice that sounds even further from his own. As if this were another person entirely. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _The guards drag the man away, though he’s begun to smile again, that ugly, taunting grin. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Thank you, Dameron,” he speaks through his evil looking smirk. “That’s all we needed to know.” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Throw him out where the garbage is,” Poe demands as the men head off toward the other side of the room, the crowd parting as they go past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Once they’re out of sight, Poe turns to face me._ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I still haven’t moved, and as his aura begins melting back to it’s comforting, familiar state, he moves forward, as if to hold me or pull me away from the wall. But, no doubt seeing the way I’m nearly curled into myself, he probably decides it’s best to leave me be at the moment. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _Vera steps out from around the crowd of people who had gathered to witness the scuffle and begins ushering them all back to their seats, saying something about free passes for two months if they’d all fuck off and stop staring at us. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Finn… I’m so sorry…” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“I’d like to go home,” I tell him, my voice sounding surprisingly firm. “Please.” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _I raise my eyes up to meet his. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _He nods in understanding. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“I… I can have a car drive you back to the boarding house.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _My eyes go to the ground as I push back the tears that threaten to spill over. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _“Thank you, Poe.”_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	18. Chapter 18

I don’t sleep well for the next few nights. If I do, I just have nightmares about the dead man I’d seen with his brains blown out outside the club. 

I try to throw myself back into school and work, which I’ve definitely been slacking off on for the past month or so when I’d been so focused on Poe. But it’s hard to focus on anything now. I’m shocked I’m still passing my classes or haven’t gotten myself fired from work with the amount of transactions I’ve messed up. I decide to give myself a pass on the guilt though, because I assume seeing a dead body for the first time in your life is a fairly ok excuse to not be one hundred percent while working at a furniture store. 

Rey knows something is wrong. She asked me if I was ok once I got home that night after being dropped off by one of Poe’s drivers that he of course has on hand. I don’t know how much Kylo told her about what happened, but I didn’t want to be the one to do it. I didn’t want to talk about it all. 

Knowing me as she does, she understood this without me having to say anything at all, and she’s given me some distance ever since.

It’s now been a solid two weeks since I’ve spoken a word to Poe. He calls and texts almost everyday, begging me to meet him somewhere, or come to the club, or asking if he can come to the house. I don’t answer a single one. 

At first it’s because I assume it’s better to just cut things off here and now. That if I just don’t contact Poe at all, my message would be clear and he’d understand that it’s over. But that was when I’d assumed he would stop calling me after just a few days. 

His voicemails and texts are at first pleading and apologizing, but now they’re just asking if I’m ok and telling me he’s here if I need him. 

I feel sick with guilt that I haven’t said a single thing in return, and also because I really do want to talk to him. I feel like a part of me is missing. I realize just how much I looked forward to seeing Poe, how colorful he made life feel, how much he made me laugh, how loved he made me feel. 

But I assumed he’d know exactly why I’m keeping my distance. 

I had my suspicions about the men that were hanging around the club, obviously up to no good, but now that murder is involved, I don’t want any part of it. If I’m involved in anything remotely illegal, I’ll definitely be kicked out of the boarding house with no money, and therefore kicked out of school as well. 

Perhaps I’m just being paranoid, what with the dead guard and my interaction with one of the gangsters my last night at the club, but the whole experience has frightened me beyond belief. 

Everywhere I go, when I walk to and from school, when I am at work, or anytime I leave the house or am near a window for that matter, I can’t shake the grim feeling that there is someone watching me.

I stare out my window, for the hundredth time today, gazing out into the dreary, grey painted atmosphere, searching for the source of whatever’s making my skin crawl. 

Last night I had been walking home from class, same as I have every Tuesday. Of course, I started to feel that spine tingling feeling of eyes on me, once again. I just kept walking as always until my heart had started beating faster and faster, and I was unable to determine if there were footsteps behind me, or if I was only hearing mine. I couldn’t tell if there was someone else breathing heavily behind me, or if it was just me. 

I ran the rest of the way home, praying I would reach the house before something happened, knowing that in this part of town, there’d be no one close by willing to help me if something happened. 

I’m tired of this. There is no one watching me, there’s no one following me. I need to grow a pair and stop all of these ridiculous suspicions. 

My cell phone trembles slightly as I hold it to my ear, hearing it begin to ring, waiting with bated breath for the other end to pick up. 

I don’t have to wait more than two rings.

“Finn,” Poe gasps, as if he’d literally been sprinting before picking up the phone. 

“Poe,” I answer, keeping my tone neutral. “We need to talk. Can we meet?” 

“Yes,” he replies rapidly before I’ve hardly gotten the words out. “Do you want me to pick you up, or do you want to meet at the park? Anywhere you want?”

He sounds about as desperate as I feel. But I still refuse to show it.

“I can meet you at the mall in about twenty minutes. Food court.” 

“I’ll be there.”

I stare straight ahead as I sit, waiting at the small table for two I’d found in the auditorium sized food court. This was the first place I thought of, mostly because it’s huge and easy to get away from people, and I knew there wouldn’t be anyone here on a Wednesday morning. 

Poe arrives only five minutes after I do, looking more frazzled than I’ve ever seen him before. 

His hair is unkempt, he’s unshaven, his clothes look like he just threw them on before he got here, and he has dark circles under his eyes, looking as if he’s missed as much sleep as I have. 

His eyes are able to light up only slightly once he sits down in front of me. 

“Are you alright?” he asks me as he reaches into his jacket pocket and nervously lights a cigarette, which I’m almost positive you’re not allowed to do in here. “Finn, I’m so sorry, I should have taken you home the other night, I didn’t mean to just-”

“It’s ok. I needed to talk to you.” 

He leaves the cigarette in his mouth while he brushes a shaking hand through his hair. 

“I know something’s wrong. You need to tell me what’s going on.”

He stares up at me, looking as if at first he wants to protest, before his eyes sink and he nods his head. 

“I should have told you a long time ago,” he admits, taking a drag off the cigarette. “I just didn’t think it would turn into something like this…”

“The men who were causing trouble in the club, the first night I came,” I begin, keeping my hands flat on my lap, even when I see Poe’s free hand moving slightly toward me across the table. “They were involved in the… murder, right?” 

His eyes close for a brief moment before he gives a quick nod. 

“Yes. Bronsan and Miggs.”

“The man who attacked me was the one who shot the guard.”

“Yes. Bronsan. He’s always been… eager to prove himself.” Poe hisses a joyless laugh. “He probably jumped at the chance to be the one to shoot down one of my guards.”

“Why?”

His eyes close as he rubs his hand against his forehead. 

“It was a warning. That they’re not going to back off until they get what they want.”

My gaze stays narrowed as I fight the urge to throw the entire table aside and embrace him. 

“Who are they? What do they want?” 

He doesn’t want to tell me obviously, but this is how I’m able to put together more of the pieces.

“They have something to do with your past, don’t they? What were they… were they clients-”

“No. I worked for them. Or rather, I worked for their boss. Jones Crimsley. He’s the biggest gangster in the city.” 

He takes another nervous drag off his cigarette, keeping his eyes off me, afraid of my reaction. 

“Poe, you… you’re telling me you were a sex worker for the… richest gangster in Canto Bight?” 

He nods again, his hand pressed against the back of his neck. 

“Finn, I was… I was young, I didn’t know-”

“It doesn’t matter,” I shake my head, ignoring the alarm ringing in my head, wondering if there has been anything else extremely illegal Poe has been involved with. “Is everything you told me before true? About how you left? You didn’t… you didn’t steal any money from these people, did you?”

I’m afraid to even hear the answer. 

“No,” he answers, shaking his head insistently. “No, the only money I took was my cut. And there were no drugs or guns, or anything, at least that I was involved with. I mean, I… I knew about them, and I saw them, but I never…”

“Then what do they want with you? Why did they… shoot that man?”

My voice lowers, and I begin glancing around anxiously, making sure there’s no one listening in. 

“They’re pissed,” he replies, shaking his head as his eyes bore holes into the table. “Jones is pissed I left when I was making him a lot of money, he was pissed when I ended up being just as successful as him. He’s also probably pissed I make my money honestly now. I don’t have to constantly worry about the cops catching up to me, and I still bring in the same amount he does every year.” 

I nod my head slowly, trying to understand all of this. 

“You don’t just leave Jones’ mob, and if you do, you need to fucking disappear,” he tells me. “I of course was a hot head and didn’t believe any of that, so I left and opened the hottest nightclub in the city right in front of his fucking face. He probably feels cheated, greedy bastard.”

“So, these people who are coming after you…”

“They all work for him. People highest up on the food chain. They only know me because I was Jones’ favorite, he’d hire me for all his best clients when I wasn’t out on the street-”

“Are they just trying to intimidate you into shutting the place down or something?” I interrupt, not really caring to hear the details of Poe’s life as a prostitute at this moment. 

“No. They fucking hate me. I’m guessing I’ll eventually get some kind of demand from Jones for some amount of money I’ll have to give him, or else he’ll have some plan to drop a hint to the cops about my… past. And fuck, he’ll probably have a way to pin a bunch of other shit on me that will get me locked up for life. He’s done it before to people who haven’t paid him what he wants.” 

He takes a heavy breath, leaning back in his seat, puffing on the cigarette for a second before dropping his hands to his knees.

“Or he’ll just want to have me killed.”

We’re both silent, letting his eerie words hang in the air. 

“Honestly, I’d rather that, than have him ruin me,” he chuckles humorously. “I may have had a toughened up background, but I don’t think I have the mental strength to survive a life in prison…”

“Can’t Kylo help you out?” I question, recalling the story he told me about how Kylo had helped him get out of his old life. “Wasn’t he somehow involved with these people?”

“There’s nothing he can do. They’ve targeted him too.”

I recall the night I had been waiting for Poe outside the club and I’d seen the Rolls Royce racing after Kylo’s car. 

“They threatened him,” Poe answers my unasked question. “Even someone as intimidating as Kylo can’t do anything about an entire empire of gangsters coming down on us. A couple of them were down at the club one night and he told them to back off, of course not that kindly. They told him to stay out of this, or they’ll kill him. Or frame him for money laundering, which wouldn’t be hard to do, considering how much business he’s done with Jones.”

“There’s no way he can get away with all of this,” I deny, almost laughing at how incredible this all sounds. 

“You obviously don’t know how Canto Bight works,” Poe responds curtly, bringing the cigarette nervously to his lips once again as he gazes out at the mostly empty food court. 

“But Poe… what are you going to do?”

I can tell he’s been pondering this question himself for quite some time based on the enormous amount of stress seeming to weigh through every inch of his body. 

“We’re going to find a way,” he shrugs, the smoke slowly curling away from his cigarette as he twirls it between his fingers. “I have a lot of good people behind me as well.”

He tries to sound reassuring, but obviously, it sounds like this Jones person probably has much more powerful people behind him. 

“I know this… this isn’t exactly an inviting situation. But I don’t want to lose you, Finn. I’ll talk to Jones, I’ll even pay him as much as he wants if need be, but… Finn I really want you back… I _need_ you back.”__

_ _My chest pains in yearning._ _

_ _“I’m just… I need to think about it. I’ve been really freaked out lately, I can’t stop thinking about that man who got killed, I feel like someone’s following me…”_ _

_ _“Someone is following you?” Poe asks, his arms leaning up against the table as alarm plagues his eyes. _ _

_ _“No. I don’t think so. I mean… I don’t know. You’re right, I don’t know Canto Bight, and I haven’t seen a gunshot victim before in my life-”_ _

_ _“Finn, listen to me,” he suddenly starts, grabbing my hand where it had begun to rest on the table. _ _

_ _He stares intently into my eyes, a mixture of fear and rage. _ _

_ _“You need to be careful. These people are not messing around. They will hurt you if they-”_ _

_ _“Are they coming after me?” I ask, startled that he’s taking my paranoia completely seriously. “Are they going to come after Rey? What do we do, what do they want?”_ _

_ _“They’re probably just trying to scare you. And in turn, intimidate me more. In the meantime, you do not leave the house by yourself, and you do not provoke them. Don’t even look at them if you see them. And you call me immediately if you feel you’re in danger.”_ _

_ _I stare at him, trying to decide if all of this is really serious. _ _

__“Finn, I… I understand if you don’t want to be around me,” he accepts, his eyes filled with pain. “But you have to promise me… _please_ promise me you’ll tell me if anything’s wrong.”__

_ _My mouth opens and closes, overwhelmed by the sudden realization of what I’ve gotten myself into. _ _

_ _“I… ok, I will,” I nod, much to his visible relief. _ _

_ _We sit for a moment, him still gripping onto my hand, the cigarette left forgotten in his other hand. _ _

_ _“I… have to go back to school now.”_ _

_ _He sits upright as if something had startled him, and he nods in understanding, but still holds onto my hand. _ _

_ _“Ok… ok… yeah, you should go do that.” _ _

_ _I know he doesn’t want to let me go. He’s afraid he’s not going to hear from me after this. I honestly don’t know if that’s true or not._ _

_ _“Thank you, Poe. For everything you’ve done for me.”_ _

_ _His eyes are off to the side of me, staring down at nothing._ _

_ _“I love you,” he replies simply, as if that were the answer to everything he did. _ _

_ _“Goodbye,” I tell him quietly. _ _

_ _I stand up, but he holds onto my hand until I’ve all but pulled it away._ _


	19. Chapter 19

“I don’t know what to do,” I tell Rey, after what felt like an hour long speech. “I’m so confused and scared.” 

We’ve been sitting in the cafe at the college, off at the end of a long table, away from anyone else. It’s been only one day since my last conversation with Poe, but I couldn’t keep it in any longer. I needed Rey’s advice. I needed someone to tell me I’m either making the right choice or a huge mistake. 

Apparently Kylo had already told her a large chunk of what is going on, so thankfully, none of it is too shocking or requires too much explaining. 

“Kylo told me it’s pointless to not be seen together anymore,” she tells me. “They’ve been spying on the place for months now, so you and I are screwed either way.” 

“Then what do we do? We can’t get involved in this, Rey.” 

She sinks down on the bench, shrugging her shoulders as if at a loss. 

“I don’t plan on breaking up with Kylo,” she informs me, causing me to stare at her in surprise. “I’m not going to let these people intimidate me.” She sounds almost angered now. “I love him, and I will decide who I spend my time with, not these low-lives.” 

Her certainty makes me feel even more guilty about my coldness towards Poe. 

“But aren’t you scared that’s just going to make it worse?”

“Finn, are you kidding, I’m fucking terrified. I know this goes way deeper than I could possibly understand. Kylo didn’t tell me everything, but I’m smart enough to assume he and Poe were somehow involved with these people before.”

“That doesn’t bother you?” I question her in amazement. 

“We all have shitty backgrounds, Finn. My parents left me on the doorstep of an orphanage because they’d rather have enough money to drink than waste any of it on me. The point is, Kylo and Poe are good, honest people now. And I fall more in love with Kylo everyday, and I’m not going to let anything or anyone stop me from continuing something that makes me feel better than I have in years.” 

I’m surprised at Rey’s confidence in this. It seems like she didn’t have to give this matter a second thought. 

“Poe really cares about you, Finn,” she continues when she sees my continued hesitation. “Kylo says he’s become like a whole new person ever since he met you.”

I look up at her in confusion. I didn’t think Kylo was hardly aware of my existence. 

“Apparently Poe hasn’t been in a good place, but with you… Kylo tells me he seems better than he’s ever been. And he’s relieved for it.” 

I stare down at my knees, feeling odd that this piece of information gives me an entirely new perspective on this. 

I thought Kylo either hated me, or just thought me a minor nuisance that he’d rather ignored. I don’t think the man has said one word to me. And I assumed Poe’s words about how much he needed me was just more of his dramatics, something he probably said to all of his lovers in the past. But if that were true, why would Kylo bother telling Rey how much I’ve… changed him?

“I know you love him,” Rey pushes. “And I think he really could use your support right now. I can’t imagine how scared he feels.” 

I don’t answer her right away, but I know she’s right. 

Poe has done nothing to me, aside from causing me to fall madly in love with him in a matter of weeks. If I’m hardly involved in all of this, yet still terrified of it, how frightened must Poe be feeling right now? And I left him alone. Only because I wanted to save myself. 

When I look back up at her, Rey can tell exactly what I’m thinking.

“Just go to him,” she says softly, her hand resting on top of mine. “He’ll forgive you.”

I don’t know how I’m able to salvage any of the relationships in my life from the amount of times I’ve messed things up, but I put my faith in Rey’s words.

This time when I call, Poe picks up on the first ring. 

“Finn?” he answers, sounding just as eager as he had the last time I called. 

“Hi,” I greet, wanting to smack myself for my dumb salutation. “Um… are you at your house?” 

“I am,” he answers after a short moment of silence. “Can you come over?”

“If I could, I’d like very much to come over.”

He gives me his address and offers to pick me up, but I decide to walk over, even though it will be a bit of a trek. I want to have the time to myself to think over what exactly I’m going to say.

When I get to the apartment building, I almost think I’m at the wrong place. I’ve spent nearly ten minutes walking through all the high class, shimmering buildings that decorate Canto Bight, until arriving at this smaller, nondescript building that Poe directed me to. I would have missed it if I hadn’t been looking for it specifically. 

I enter the building and head up the stairs to his floor, surprised at how bare looking it all is, though I really don’t know what I was expecting. Something as grand and lavish as the hotel rooms at the club, perhaps. But now that I think about it, if Poe spends practically all his waking hours there, it might be nice to come back home to something simpler. 

His apartment is the only one down a short hallway on the fourth floor. The placing of the front door makes it almost look like a broom closet. Something you’d pass right by while walking down the longer corridor, even if you happened to turn your head to glance down the passageway. 

I suppose it makes sense if he’s hiding from someone. I’d never think to look for Poe Dameron in a building like this, much less down, what looks to be a spare corridor. 

All is extremely quiet as I turn down the hallway, walking down to Poe’s door. I knock quietly, afraid to disturb the steady silence. 

I hear footsteps rushing toward the door as I take a deep breath, going over what I am going to say in my head before the door swings open, revealing a scruffy haired Poe, wearing a simple t shirt and sweatpants and holding… a cat. 

“You made it,” he smiles in satisfaction. “I was worried you’d think you were at the wrong…”

His eyes follow to where I’m staring in wide eyed surprise at the white and orange feline slung under his arm that is returning my stare with a look of utter boredom. 

“Oh,” he grins, cradling the creature in both hands, “this is BB-8. He’s… well, he’s-”

“You have a cat?” I affirm, finding myself want to laugh at the unexpected sight of Poe Dameron affectionately holding the light colored kitten in his arms, stroking his hand over its head when he starts getting fussy. 

“Well, he’s not mine really… he’s more of my roommate. He was a stray that liked to climb his way up through my window, and I decided I might as well let him stay. He practically moved himself in anyway.”

I nod, smiling a bit as BB-8 wiggles around in Poe’s arms before he leans down and sets him back on the floor, where he then scurries off back into the apartment. 

“Why’d you name him that?” I ask as Poe steps aside and ushers me inside, closing the door behind us. 

“Ah… I don’t know,” he shrugs, laughing a bit as he steps to the left side of the room, where the living room is. “I think I must have been staring at the serial numbers on the milk I was feeding him… all the numbers and random letters that are in really tiny print near the bottom, you know… I just kept saying a bunch out loud until I found one I liked. I’m not very creative at coming up with names.”

“I think that’s a very creative name,” I object as he sits down on the large, brown fabric couch, gesturing for me to sit down next to him. 

Just from taking one glance around, I can tell his apartment is really only one room.

There’s the walkway leading from the front door, all the way through two glass doors at the back of the room, which open into the kitchen. The living room is on the left side, consisting of the couch we’re sitting at and a couple chairs sitting in front of a large shelf full of books, and a small tv. A dining room table sits a few feet behind the living room, though it doesn’t look like it’s used very often. 

The right side of the room seems to only have two doors, I’m guessing that leads to a bathroom and the bedroom. 

A long line of open windows along the wall let in the bright grey light from outside, igniting the quiet little apartment with a dreary glow. 

“So you live here?”

“It would appear so. I know, probably not as extravagant as you were expecting, but I really don’t spend a lot of time here. I figured I didn’t need to blow a bunch of money on a million dollar mansion that I’ll hardly even live in. I really only come here to sleep.” 

“That must spare you a fortune.” Though he probably doesn’t need to.

“Yeah, I suppose it does.” 

He leans back against the couch, and I can’t help but feel the need to drag him off to bed with me. He looks beyond tired, and all I want to do is lay in his arms, and not have to talk about anything at all. 

“I’m sorry, Poe. I didn’t mean to cut myself off like that, I just-”

“It’s ok, Finn. I understand, all of this… it’s a lot. To say the least.” 

His eyes close as he runs a hand through his messy hair. 

“I should have warned you what you were getting into, I shouldn’t have put you in danger like that…”

“You have done nothing but show me kindness, Poe. You’ve given me something I can’t even describe, and I can never thank you enough. I could never blame you for this. I was scared.”

I turn away from him as he looks at me, feeling myself begin to shrink into myself as always. 

“I’m always too scared,” I admit, frustration trimming my tone.

“What are you scared of?” Poe asks, moving closer to me as I stare down at my hands, both curled up into a fist. 

He places his warm hand against mine, relaxing my grip. 

“Tell me,” he encourages, his voice as gentle as his touch. 

Suddenly, it’s as if a damn breaks loose in my mind. I let out everything I’ve been holding in for so long. Every fear the plagues my mind, all the reasons I’m terrified of giving myself the chance to live.

“I’m scared of the future,” I tell him. “That I might not have one. I’m scared of starting my life once there’s no one to help me anymore. I have no family, I have nowhere to go once people decide to stop supporting me. I don’t know what I want to do, I don’t know how to find my way once I’m done with school. I’m scared Rey will find her path and leave me, and I’ll just be stuck here, with nothing… I don’t know if I’ll ever be happy.”

He listens to everything I tell him, nodding in understanding as I gradually loosen my grip on my hands and intertwine my fingers with his while I describe every inch of fear I’ve been harboring in my mind, to the point where my voice actually starts to tremble as if I’m going to cry.

He doesn’t tell me he pities me, or give me empty promises about how everything is going to turn out ok and I am going to find out who I am and what I want and finally see a clear path for myself. 

“I understand, Finn,” he speaks softly once I’ve finished, feeling as if a bit of weight has been relieved from my chest. “I’ve always been afraid of my future. I still am.” 

I look up at him. He’d moved closer to me by now so that my face is only inches from his. 

“I’m terrified of being alone,” he confesses. “That’s why I spend all my time at the club, or at parties. I need to be around other people, or else I feel…” 

His hand grabs mine harder, and I stroke my fingers back and forth over his skin. 

“At first I took… a lot of lovers…”

My first instinct is to tell him he doesn’t need to tell me about all of that, but I can tell he really wants to talk about this. And he let me talk about all of my problems.

“I thought I’d find something to make me feel better, that one of them would turn into a relationship that would finally make me feel happy. Someone I could talk to, be myself around, not have to constantly keep a persona for. I wanted to wake up beside someone and feel safe, and excited and… well, the way I feel when I’m with you. I tried and tried for years, but eventually, I gave up.”

He grins, looking down at his hand holding mine. 

“Who knew all I had to do was wait for someone to come to me?” 

I feel a wave of warmth run through my chest. Without thinking, I reach my hand, touching it against the side of his face, feeling his rough skin made all the more course by the beard he has let grown over the past couple of weeks. 

I pull him forward, embracing him with my lips, moving my hand to grip his thick hair. 

“I love you,” I whisper against his lips. 

He reaches his hands up to cup my face, his fingers massaging against my skin as he pulls me back into a kiss. 

We keep on like this for a few more seconds, until I throw myself away from him when I feel BB-8 jump into our laps. 

“Christ!” I exclaim as Poe laughs, while BB-8 just goes right on and makes himself comfortable, laying down on Poe’s legs. 

“I’m sorry,” he smiles, giving the cat an affectionate pat. “He’s not used to me giving attention to anyone else.”

“Which is crazy,” I acknowledge. “There isn’t a person on this Earth you don’t give attention to.” 

“Mm hm,” he hums, picking up the cat and standing up to take him over to the kitchen. “But don’t worry. He’s going to like you. He likes everyone.”

“How do you know he likes everyone if he hasn’t met anyone but you?”

“I just know him. He’s a cat, it’s easy to read what he’s thinking.” 

He steps back into the doorway of the kitchen, leaning up against one of the white framed doors. 

“Just so you know,” he says, looking at me with somber eyes. “The offer to live with me still stands.” 

A jolt goes through me, realizing I had completely forgotten about his offer, that I thought he only made because he was drunk. 

“That is, if all of this looks appealing to you,” he adds, gesturing around the simple apartment doubtfully. 

“No no, it does,” I assure him, honestly feeling comforted by the cozy atmosphere. “I just… you don’t think that’s a little fast?” 

He shrugs, as if it were the most normal thing in the world right now.

“No. People move in with each other all the time. I’d rather have a roommate that I like, rather than get someone I don’t know. And BB-8 can only keep intellectually stimulating company for so long.” 

I laugh to myself, but seriously consider his offer. 

What’s wrong with living with Poe? The rent here shouldn’t be much more than what I pay at the boarding house, especially if we split it. And it’s true, most people who are roommates don’t know a thing about each other before moving in together. 

They’re probably not lovers though… 

“Just promise me you’ll consider it,” he pleads, getting that familiar sparkle in his eye from the club. “BB-8 and I would love the company.” 

I grin as I hear a soft meow come from the kitchen, where I suppose BB-8 is munching on some cat food. 

“Well, maybe I should stay the night first,” I reply, returning his smirk. “Just to take things slow.”

Hours later, I’m laying in Poe’s bed, tangled up in him, his arms cradling me as he kisses all over my face. 

His bedroom is small, mostly filled by this enormous bed, that is larger than the ones in the hotel at the club. It’s dark, the only light coming from the open window beside us that is letting in a soft breeze through the tiny room. 

“I feel so safe with you,” I say without thinking, feeling him kiss along my eyelids. “I like it here…”

“I want you to stay,” he says, stroking his fingers down my scalp. “You can if you want to, you know?”

I don’t answer, rolling over against him so my face is buried in his arm. 

“Finn?”

He turns me back over, holding his hand to the side of my face as I open my eyes to stare up at him. 

“I want you to know that you don’t have to be so afraid. You don’t have to worry about your future and what’s going to happen to you. I’m always going to be here. You can stay here if you need, and… if you need help with money for school or anything, I can take care of anything you need.”

I cock my head at him.

“Well, as long as I keep working and doing good in my classes, the state helps me out paying for school.”

“I know, I mean if you don’t want to keep that job. At the furniture store.” 

My first thought is to tell him how crazy that is, and that I would never quit, but then I stop to realize how amazing that sounds. To be able to just focus on school, maybe even take on a few more classes.

“I can tell you have a lot on your shoulders, and you don’t want to tell anyone,” he speaks, making me get a weird feeling in my chest. “I just want to make sure you’re ok. I want you to be happy.”

I smile up at him, feeling more special than I have my entire life. But my doubt is still there, keeping me from completely relishing in how much Poe seems to love me. 

“You may feel this way now,” I tell him, placing my hand around his hip, gently running my fingers across his lower back. “Because we just made love, and we’re laying here like this, but… we could grow apart just like that. Then you won’t care what I do.”

It feels good to get these worries out in the open, but a part of me is praying he’ll find some way to convince me I’m being ridiculous. 

“That’s not true,” he denies, sounding so sure, that I almost think he might have thought this through before himself. “Even if we aren’t in love anymore, I wouldn’t… I _couldn’t_ just… cut you out of my life.” __

_ _He leans down and kisses my nose, smiling against my skin as he leans his forehead against mine. _ _

_ _“I understand this must all seem very fast and crazy for you, but I’ve always been a very decisive person. And I’ve never felt this strongly about anyone in my life.” _ _

_ _I reach up to press my hand into his hair, pulling him down toward my lips, feeling my heart beat faster with inexplicable joy as Poe falls back onto the bed, pulling the covers up around us, locking us into our own world, undisturbed by anything outside of this bed. _ _

_ _“Poe?”_ _

_ _“Hm?”_ _

_ _“You don’t have to be so afraid of being alone. Because as long as you’ll have me, I’m never going to leave you.”_ _


	20. Chapter 20

Things get a little better through the next week. I get back into my routine of going to the club after school and work. 

The club isn’t as tense as I thought it would be, and I don’t ask about what went down with telling the police about the dead guard, mostly because I really just don’t want to bring it all up again. But I do notice that when I look closely enough in the jackets of the guards, they each carry what looks to be a small handgun that I’m sure they didn’t have before. 

Vera still seems cautious, but definitely not as frightened looking as she was when I saw her the night of the shooting. On Monday evening, my first night back at the club, she had shaken my hand, and nearly pulled me into a hug, before she seemed to remember herself. 

“I’m glad to see you back, Mr. Storm,” she had said, nodding to me sharply. “Maybe now Poe won’t be so mopey.”

With that, she had strutted off, while I couldn’t surprise a grin. It’s a relief to know I affect Poe just as much as he affects me. 

I think more about his offer to move in with him and decide to give it a bit more time, at least until I start my senior year of college. 

That way I can save up more money this summer when I work more. Poe tried to assure me I wouldn’t have to pay rent if I lived with him, but I’d feel awful if I didn’t, so I insist that, if he wants me to live with him, I’m paying for something. He eventually agrees. 

Poe tells me there isn’t a word from Jones’ gang for this entire week, but everyone remains on alert anyway. The first couple of nights, I was terrified they’d all just march through the doors and start shooting up the place any second. But there’s hardly even argument or sliver of discontempt. Everyone seems to be going along as usual, having the time of their lives, which is a great relief to me. But of course, it’s too good to last.

I walk to the club alone on the next Thursday, almost two weeks since Poe and I got back together. Usually Poe or one of his drivers picks me up, but the day had been a bit more stressful than usual, so I naturally fell into my usual routine of walking alone, taking comfort in the blissful moments alone where I can properly clear my head for tonight so I’m not a complete drag at the club. 

I know deep down that this isn’t a smart idea, since it gets dark so early, and we’re not sure what’s going on with Jones and his gang. But it honestly just slips my mind tonight. 

I stayed at school to get all of the homework done that I’ve been slacking off on, so it’s been quite a long day, and a long week at that. I’m ready to just go up into the hotel room with Poe and relax for the rest of the night, And maybe have something to eat. 

I’ve been in a better mood lately, so I haven’t had that nagging feeling of someone following me for a while now. But tonight, I feel it once again when I’m about halfway to the city. 

There are many cars that pass by me on the street at this point, but one of them slows down once they get closer to me. 

As I keep walking along the sidewalk, I hear the engine still going, but whoever’s behind me never passes me.

Fear closes around my throat as I feel dread quiver through my body. 

My footsteps begin to slow, but I’m too frozen to turn my head and see who is trailing behind me on the street. 

I feel the headlights glaring behind me, shining on me like a spotlight, making sure whoever’s behind me will see every move I make, including if I make a bolt for the busy city, which would definitely not work out, seeing as I’m still at least five or so blocks from Canto Bight, and I can’t outrun a car. 

As soon as I somehow force my feet to start moving at a steadier pace, the car zooms up beside me before screeching to a halt. 

Not a second after the Rolls Royce has stopped, the back doors open and I see two silhouettes dressed in the familiar suits and fedoras, getting out and heading my way. 

It’s now that I decide to start running, my blood already pounding in my ears as my eyes strain to the city lights that seem miles away. 

I hear footsteps chasing after me, the men cursing under their breath as I race away down the sidewalk, my limbs shaking in a mixture of terror and adrenaline. 

My scream is unable to leave my throat when I feel multiple pairs of hands grab onto my arms, yanking me back towards the car. 

I kick and punch and scratch, every one of my extremities flailing desperately as I’m dragged back to the car, but my voice is the only thing unable to work. 

“We’re late,” I hear a voice from the driver’s seat say as the two men struggle to push me into the car. “Hurry up.”

“You’re the one who took so long followin’ him,” one of the men grabbing me replies, his voice strained as he tries to keep ahold of me. 

“Come on kid, just get in,” the other man huffs as I writhe against his iron grasp. “We ain’t gonna sit here and do this all night.”

I finally recognize him as the burly man who’d been smoking the cigar the first night I came to visit the club. When I remember how huge he was, I know my chances of escaping are slimmer. 

My breathing stops as my eyes gaze fearfully at the dark interior of the car, and my brain finally realizes what is happening to me. 

“_Help!_” I finally scream, trying to brace myself against the frame of the car. __

_ _“Shut the hell up!” one of the men holding me barks. _ _

_ _“Ah shit, just put him in the damn trunk, Miggs,” the driver groans, as if I’d caused a minor, yet irritating annoyance. “Jones is waitin’, we don’t have time for this.” _ _

_ _“Stupid fuckin’ kid,” the burly man grunts as he and the other man holding me haul me towards the back of the car while I continue screaming, fear burning through my blood when I realize no one is going to come to my aid. _ _

_ _My eyes race around the streets, trying to see if there are any more cars, or any people out that will hear me. But my vision is blurred, and it’s so dark, I can hardly see the street itself. _ _

_ _“Open it,” the burly man commands, suddenly grabbing me around my waist, pinning my right arm to my side while the other man lets me go to open the trunk. _ _

_ _I continue to kick and claw with my free arm, even trying to stomp on his foot a few times. But he just stands there, holding me as if I were a child throwing a tantrum. As if he does this everyday. _ _

_ _The other man steps aside once the trunk is open and the burly man moves me forward, releasing me from his grasp to grab onto my head._ _

_ _“We told you to shut the fuck up,” he growls before my head is slammed against the side of the car. _ _

_ _I go limp immediately, the force of my skull cracking against the metal of the vehicle. _ _

_ _My head throbs in agonizing pain, as if it had been split in two, and my eyes fall shut in an attempt to numb the pain. _ _

_ _I feel myself lifted up and dumped down onto a hard surface, a small moan of discomfort the only sound able to come from my mouth. _ _

_ _The sound of something slamming shut is the last thing I’m aware of before I slip into darkness._ _

_ _

_ _I wake up laying somewhere cold and uncomfortable. I feel like my body has been resting on metal pipes for hours and my head has been crushed by a semi truck. _ _

_ _I push myself up slowly, shivering as I realize the ground and the air around me feels twenty below. And sitting up makes my limbs feel a million times worse. _ _

_ _When my eyes blink open, my head spikes with sharp pain that makes me gasp, and I reach my hand up toward the front of my head, positive it must be ripped open, or at least bleeding. _ _

_ _“Finally!” I hear someone shout, making me cringe as the sudden cry makes my head ring even more. “Now we can finally get goin’.” _ _

_ _The blurriness begins to subside, and a group of five or six figures come into view, hovering above me and surrounding me at every angle. _ _

_ _I blink a few times, and immediately recognize four of the men grinning maliciously down at me. _ _

_ _The elvish man and the burly one form my first night at the club, (Bronsan and Miggs, I remember Poe telling me) and then the lanky one and the blonde hair, blue eyed one I’d seen at the bar all those nights ago. They’re all dressed as they were the nights I saw them, all looking equally evil, looking down at me as if I were a bug they were eager to crush. _ _

_ _I jerk up, pushing any pain to the back of my mind as my first thought is to try and find a way out of here, but I hardly stand up before someone grabs me from behind, yanking me to my feet and turning me to face them. _ _

_ _I don’t recognize the man, but from the gold striped suit, perfectly pressed dress shirt, and two very mean looking guards standing beside him, I’m guessing this must be Jones. _ _

_ _He looks to be maybe in his late forties, with a traditionally handsome face and peeks of grey and brown hair I can see under his fedora. _ _

_ _But what frightens me about him is the aura or bravado about him that reminds me a lot of Poe. _ _

_ _I shake the thought off as quickly as it arrives._ _

_ _Just by quickly glancing around the place, I can tell we’re in some kind of large warehouse. But I have no idea how far they took me from Takodana. We could be in a different side of the state for all I know, it feels like I was out for hours. My only sense of hope is that, from what I can tell looking out the yellow stained windows, it’s still nighttime. _ _

_ _“Finn Storm,” the man holding me by my jacket grins an award winning grin at me. “We finally meet.” _ _

_ _With a small flick of his hands, he shoves me backwards, and two of the men standing behind me quickly restrain me. I don’t even have to look to know that the pointy faced, black bearded man is one of the men grabbing my arm, because he once again crushes my arm in a bone-crunching grasp. _ _

_ _“Now, I want to make this short and sweet,” Jones starts pointedly, straightening out his fancy jacket. “This will go much more smoothly if you just do as I tell you without-”_ _

_ _“What do you want?” I ask desperately, not knowing why in the world Jones and his gang would want to take me all the way out here, wherever this is. “Where are we?” _ _

_ _My heart beats faster as anger begins to outweigh my fear. _ _

_ _“If you don’t let me go, people are going to come looking for me,” I warn him, trying to sound sure of myself, though I know it’s entirely possible he can get away with killing me, especially since he’s no doubt done it before. _ _

_ _He sighs, a humorless smile appearing on his lips._ _

_ _“Now… this is what I meant,” he chastises, shaking his finger as if I were a misbehaving child. “This goes so much more quickly if you just behave…” _ _

_ _He begins pacing back and forth as I hear dark chuckling behind me, and the two men holding me start to grip my arms tighter. _ _

_ _“We need to make Mr. Dameron understand something,” he continues, not looking directly at me as he strides back and forth. “And I am truly sorry about your involvement in it, I’m sure you had no idea about all of this when you decided to start spending your time with him. But, here you are, nevertheless.” _ _

_ _He stops his pacing, turning to look at me with an oddly sympathetic expression. If I weren’t in the circumstances I’m in and I didn’t already know about him, I’d probably say the man came across as quite charming. _ _

_ _“He’s told you about me, I’m sure. And why I’m… displeased with him at the moment.”_ _

_ _“I don’t understand,” I speak, impressed at how neutral my tone is. “He didn’t do anything to you.”_ _

_ _“I don’t expect you to understand this,” he shakes his head, his voice sounding eerily calm and forgiving, given the situation. “You come from a small town, but things work very differently in Canto Bight. I’ve known Mr. Dameron since he was seventeen, there are a lot of inner workings you couldn’t begin to comprehend-”_ _

_ _“I know that he left your service, and you were pissed,” I cut to the chase frustratedly. “He hasn’t provoked you or bothered you after that.”_ _

_ _“Hasn’t he though?” Jones presses, his face looking genuinely relaxed, but with the slightest touch of irritability in his eyes. “I’m sure you know, Mr. Dameron is not a… quiet man. He made the choice to stay in the city, try to one-up my success. He may not have stolen from me, but he decided to drop out of my “service” as you say, at a time he knew was crucial for me. He and a few others were bringing in a lot of important clients, and I was running low on funds after being swindled by a former colleague of mine. He knew exactly when to hit me.”_ _

“That little whore wasn’t the only one who left,” I hear one of the men behind me speak bitterly. “Bunch of ‘em followed right after him, as if he were their _savior_…” __

_ _ _ _ _ _“Poe Dameron is the reason half my business nearly tanked,” Jones continues, the charm from his voice fading more and more. “He tried to make a statement, showing everyone they could make it big out here without being in my service.”_ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Jones’ cold eyes stare ahead of him, looking at something beyond the far walls of the warehouse. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Dameron always did like to pretend he was a leader.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Or maybe he just left because he was tired of being used like a sex slave,” I suggest, my eyes narrowing in an enraged glare as I imagine this man as the man who had coerced a very young Poe to start selling himself on the streets. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Jones doesn’t answer right away, instead looking as if he’s trying to swallow down a sudden wave of anger. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I need Mr. Dameron to get a message,” he carries on, ignoring my accusation. “Again, I am sorry you have to be involved. I do believe you to be innocent in all of this. But unfortunately, I have to do what I have to do, Mr. Storm.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He turns away from me, walking back toward the two bodyguards standing behind him. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I want you to let him know that he can either turn himself over to me, and we will deal with this privately,” he starts, folding his hands behind his back. “Or, he can wait until I lose the rest of my patience and I burn his club to the ground. His choice. Be sure to let him know.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He glances between the two large bodyguards, nodding his head, something they suddenly look very happy about. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Nice talking with you, Mr. Storm. Don’t leave too much of a mess, boys. I want you out of here in thirty minutes.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Once he walks off, vanishing from my sight as the two large bodyguards suddenly begin walking up to me, I start to realize why I’m here. And what message they want to send Poe. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I can’t tell which of the two men throws the first punch into my face, but it immediately sends stars scattering across my vision. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The men holding me now let me fall to the ground before a kick lands right in the middle of my spine. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I know I have no chance at escaping six men who have had endless experience beating people to a bloody mess, so I do my best to think about anything else. I try to remind myself that they're not going to kill me, but that gets a little hard to believe when I feel my ribs crack, my ankle snapped sideways, and blood running down my face and in my mouth. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _My thoughts eventually go to Poe, which helps a bit. I picture his face, how he looked the first night I met him. I hear his voice whispering to me as we’re lying in bed in the early hours of the morning, the rare moments he’d wake before me and immediately shake me awake so he wouldn’t have to lay there alone, even for a few minutes. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I soon don’t feel the pain anymore, as long as my mind stays on this._ _ _ _


	21. Chapter 21

I wake up in a cramped space, surrounded by nothing but complete darkness. I’m laying still, but I feel myself moving, jolting slightly as if I’m moving along a bumpy road, and I realize I must be in a car. 

Every inch of my body is in agony. It hurts to even breath, my short breaths resulting in stabbing pain all throughout my abdomen. I can only move a centimeter before my body screams at me to stop. 

When I do move, I feel something thin and plasticy beneath me, like some sort of tarp. My memory is soon restored, and I remember the last thing that had happened was my head being held while someone slammed their foot into my face. I feel the effects of that by the pulsing ache in my nose. 

The vehicle I’m in shudders to a stop, and I hear the muffled sound of doors opening and closing. 

Suddenly, my dark confined space is flooded with light from something opening above me, and I feel hands gripping my shoulders and legs, lugging me out of my curled up position, much to my groaning protest. 

I’m dropped onto the concrete, which makes me feel a million knives stabbing into my stomach, causing me to yelp in pain. I taste blood in my mouth and feel it caked over my face, coming from my nose and cuts in my lip and face. 

A figure leans down over me, and I see something flash in their hands as they bend down before I feel cold metal pressing up against my neck. 

“You tell that little whore what’s gonna happen if he doesn’t give himself over,” a voice whispers to me. Even with the pounding headache I have, I can easily recognize the sound of the elvish man’s voice. “I’m gonna come back here and shoot you right in front of him. Then we’re gonna make sure he gets way worse than what you got tonight. Got it?” 

I can’t answer, I’m sure he knows, so he eventually stands up, pulling the weapon away from my neck. 

He stands over me a moment longer, relishing everything as I lay completely limp beneath him, before one of the other guys calls him back and he eventually walks off, seeming disappointed. 

I don’t move an inch until I hear the car drive away, and even then, I wait at least a couple more minutes before trying to move. 

My head feels as if it’s being crushed and is about to explode any minute, and I have to hold my breath as I start to turn myself over, or risk getting skewered by my broken ribs again. 

I’m eventually able to push myself over onto my stomach, but soon realize I’m not going to be getting onto my feet anytime soon once I feel my ankle brush against the ground, which makes it clear the bones down there are definitely not in the right place. 

I chow down on my lip, which is already torn to shreds, trying not to scream, looking around desperately to try and figure out where I am. It looks like some alleyway, due to the dumpsters and trash strewn along the cement. I can’t see too far ahead of me, but I think I’m in a city, that I hope to God is Canto Bight. 

My fingers dig into the unforgiving terrain, dragging my body across the ground, which hurts more than I thought possible. My vision begins swimming as I inch my way forward, my brain feeling as if it wants to force its way out of my head. 

After what feels like hours of struggling, I haven’t even moved myself more than a few centimeters, if that. 

My muscles spasm against the biting cold, shooting a new wave of pain through me each time. My breathing accelerates as I fear I’m never going to make my way out of here. I could die here and now, and who would know? No one knows where I am, I have no way of contacting anyone. 

I’m going to die… 

I let myself rest against the numbing concrete, unable to fight back the tears that spring from my eyes, praying that if I’m going to die, it could just happen quickly. 

“Finn?”

The voice echoes in my head, and I’m almost sure I’m hallucinating it at first. So I keep my eyes closed, feeling the pressure in my head increase. 

“Finn… holy fuck, what happened to you?”

Footsteps are running toward me and I tense as I feel someone’s hands on me. 

Whoever it is is gentle as they slowly turn me over, but I still grunt in pain as my twisted ankle moves against the ground. 

“Oh shit,” the voice breathes above me. “Finn… can you hear me?” 

My eyes open to see a figure leaning over me, their hands still cradling me, feeling invitingly warm against the freezing cold. 

I try to say something, but nothing aside from a mumbling noise comes from my mouth. 

“Fucking hell,” the familiar voice curses. 

I try opening my eyes wider, forcing my vision to focus in on the man hovering above me until I can make out the distinct face of Kylo Ren. 

“Can you move?” he asks, already going to lift me up, wrapping his arm around my back. 

I try to tell him hell no I can’t move, but he goes ahead anyway, pulling me up through my very loud objections. 

“We’re right across from the club,” he tells me once he has me leaning up against him, basically holding all of my weight. “I’m going to get you in through the back and take you up to one of the rooms. Everything’s going to be ok, you’re safe now.” 

“Poe,” I finally manage out as he starts trying to guide me out of the alleyway. “Poe…”

“He’s back at the club, you’re gonna see him soon,” Kylo assures me, trying to find a way to properly carry me so that there’s no pressure on my ankle. “It’s alright, Finn. You’re gonna be ok. Fuck, he was wondering where you were… ”

I feel like I’m fading in and out of consciousness the whole time Kylo lugs me over to the club, which really did turn out to be right across the street from the alleyway I was in. I recognize the steps I had once sat at to wait for Poe once when Kylo and I have walked out onto the sidewalk. 

True to his word, Kylo takes me to a vacant place to cross the street, where no one notices us, and then around the side of the club, to some back door. 

After that, I can’t really tell where we are. We go through tons of corridors, even what looks like a large kitchen, and I honestly get lost through it all. It doesn’t help that I’m only half awake. 

The next thing I know, we’re getting off an elevator and he’s leading me down a hallway, stopping at the first door we come to and pulling something out of his pocket, which turns out to be a key.

He unlocks the door and turns on the light to the warm hotel room, shutting the door behind us. I recognize the room as one that Poe and I had slept in a couple times. 

He lays me down on the bed, which makes me feel as if I’ve laid down on a heavenly cloud.

My eyes start to close again as Kylo rushes to close the curtains, and then takes out his cellphone, beginning to pace rapidly back and forth across the room as he holds it to his ear. 

“Rey?” I hear him speak softly, his voice sounding relieved, even though it still sounds a bit far away in my ears. “Are you still downstairs?”

It’s quiet for a bit as he runs a shaking hand through his hair. 

“Ok, don’t go outside,” he commands, his sharp voice startling me. “I need you to come up to the third floor, I’ll meet you in the hallway.” 

He hangs up, then seems to call someone else, holding the phone to his ear again. 

“Poe,” he says, making me jolt. “I need you to get up to room 203, now.” 

I try sitting up, murmuring in discomfort as pain ripples through me. 

“Stop,” he whispers to me, rushing over to place his hand against my chest, pushing me back down onto the bed. “Yeah, I found him,” he says back into the phone. “You’re gonna want to get up here.”

I think I pass out again before Poe gets here, because I can’t remember Kylo sitting down beside me on the bed and checking over my injuries until the sound of the door bursting open makes my eyes snap open to see Kylo putting a warm rag against my busted lip. 

Poe marches through the door, his eyes looking as if they’re on fire, even from where I can see. 

Horror replaces his look of outrage when his eyes land on me and my unsightly state. 

Kylo stands up, rushing to his side as I try again to sit up, but my body is far past that now. All I can do is lie here and mumble unintelligibly while trying to call to him. 

“I told you this would happen,” Kylo whispers to him harshly as Poe continues to stare at me, looking as if he’s about to be sick. “You’re lucky he’s still alive. If I hadn't noticed the Rolls Royce driving away and gone to check it out, he would have been dead by morning.” 

“Did you get a doctor?” Poe asks, his voice shaking as his hands curl into fists. 

“No, I didn’t know what you wanted me to do,” Kylo answers, waiting for his reaction.

“Well fucking call one,” Poe orders, his voice cutting through the air sharply, making me wince.

Someone rushes in through the open door behind Poe.

“Oh my God, Finn!” Rey exclaims in alarm, running toward my side. “Kylo, what happened?! What happened to him, what’s going on?” 

Her touch against my forehead feels warm and familiar, allowing me to release a breath I didn’t realize I was holding, which causes my shattered ribs to jab me once again. 

A cry chokes out of my throat, and Poe dashes over to my other side.

“Finn?” he asks as Kylo walks over to Rey and whispers something to her. She nods, and then slowly begins standing up, kissing me gently on the forehead as tears of shock begin falling down her face.

“I’ll… I’ll be back in a bit,” she says quietly to me before Kylo pulls her up and they both head out the door, closing it behind them. 

Poe’s warm hand closes around mine.

“Finn, can you hear me?” 

I groan, trying to turn myself toward him.

“Poe,” I finally speak, the single syllable making my head pound again. “Poe, there’s… you have to…”

“Shhh,” he hushes me, smoothing his hand through my hair as he holds my hand tightly. “It’s ok, Finn. Kylo’s going to get someone who’s gonna help… can you tell me what hurts?”

The answer to that would be everything, but I decide I should start with the more severe injuries. 

I fight back tears as my every breath causes a shooting pain to wretch through my torso, while I try raising my free hand to point down to my ribs and my ankle. 

“Do you think your ribs are broken?” Poe asks, his own voice sounding close to breaking as his eyes shine with tears. “Does it hurt to breathe?”

I nod my head, causing my brain to slosh around painfully. 

I have to close my eyes because my head is splitting in half again, but I can hear Poe start to sob quietly, shaking as he tries to stay quiet. 

I want to comfort him. I want to tell him that I’ll be ok, that I don’t care what Jones and his gang do to me. I’ll never leave him. 

But all I can do is lay still and let him hold my hand, unable to move any more than slowly rubbing my thumb across his hand while he weeps.

I go in and out of consciousness again once this doctor person comes into the room to look me over. I don’t know where they got him so fast or where he came from, because he certainly doesn’t look like a doctor. From what I can gather, he’s wearing a brown sweater and baggy jeans and has all his equipment in a duffel bag at his feet. But he certainly seems to know what he’s doing, because I start to feel better once he gets to work on me.

Since I’m not entirely aware of everything, I don’t know what my official diagnosis is, but I hear the words “sprained”, “concussion”, and “broken”, so it doesn’t sound promising. 

Poe stays at my side the whole time, helping with whatever he can, soothing me whenever I start to get overwhelmed. 

The cuts all over my face are stitched up, my nose (which must have been the “broken”) is set, which hurts worse than when it was broken and makes me pass out again. My ribs, thank everything holy, start to feel better after my torso is wrapped in bandages, which sets the bones back in place. 

My ankle is wrapped in something as well, which hurts like hell. After that, all I’m left with is bruises and soreness, which all numbs slightly once I swallow down a handful of painkillers the man gives me. 

After that, I pass out for good, relieved that my body is finally relaxed enough to get some sleep that I don’t want to awaken from for several months. 

It’s dark when I wake up. I can’t tell if it’s morning or night, or what day it is. The curtains are still closed, leaving the hotel room in complete darkness, aside form the small line of light peeking through the bottom of the window, past the fabric of the curtain. 

“Finn…” 

I look over to my side to see Poe still sitting beside me, gripping my hand eagerly when he sees me stir. 

He’s still in the same suit he was wearing last night, though it looks considerably ruffled. 

“Poe… what… how long was I asleep?”

“You went to sleep around four in the morning. It’s five pm now.” 

Well, crap. I could have slept hours longer than that. 

“Where’s… where’s Rey?”

“She’s alright. She’s with Kylo, they stayed in the hotel. He’s not going to leave her side.” 

I slowly start to remember how Kylo had found me in the alleyway and made sure I got safely back to the club. Back to Poe. This makes me feel all the more comforted that he is with Rey. I know he won’t let this happen to her. 

“How do you feel?” he asks, reaching over to grab something off the bedside table. “Is your head feeling ok?” 

“Um… better, I guess,” I answer, noticing that there’s still a slight pounding between my ears, but not nearly as horrific as it had been the last I remember. 

“You need to take these,” Poe tells me, sitting down on the bed and handing me another handful of pills and a glass of water. 

I swallow the pills and chug down the water, feeling only a slight twinge of pain in my abdomen now. 

“How about everything else?” he asks me, taking the glass back and putting it on the table. “Can you breathe alright?”

“Yes,” I reply, gritting my teeth in pain as I sit up straighter. He wraps his arm around my shoulders, helping me sit up against the pillows. 

“And what about your ankle?”

I look down to see my ankle and foot wrapped up in a makeshift cast, forcing it into the correct position. 

“It’s… I can’t feel it.”

“Oh, good,” Poe breathes a sigh of relief. “That’s how it’s supposed to feel. And don’t worry about your head, the pills are going to help with your concussion.” 

“How bad is my ankle?”

“It’s just a sprain. You should be able to walk on it in just a couple days, but you’ll need to keep taking painkillers for a while before it feels better. 

It’s quiet for a while as I look down at myself, assessing everything else. I feel a couple bandages or stitches holding my face together, and when I lift up my shirt, I see the white gauze wrapped around my abdomen, helping my ribs back into place. 

“Finn… can you tell me what exactly happened when-”

“Did I go to a hospital?” I ask, still feeling just as confused as I was last night. “Who did all of this?”

Poe’s face looks caught off guard, as if he didn’t expect me to be curious about this. 

“We have someone… a couple people actually… who stay here at the club and help out whenever people get hurt.”

I look up at him, my eyes narrowing. 

“You mean the people who are here to help out when there’s a fist fight at the bar and someone gets knocked out?”

“They’re all medically trained,” he assures me. “I’ve known them all for years, and the man who helped you last night is a hundred percent qualified-”

“Why didn’t you just take me to the hospital?”

“Finn… I can’t-”

“I want to go to a hospital, Poe.”

“You can’t.” 

I stare at him in disbelief, unable to believe what I’d just heard.

“Excuse me?” 

He takes a deep breath his voice determined, but his eyes fearful, as if afraid of my reaction. 

“I can’t let you go to a hospital because they’d ask questions.”

I don’t want to believe that I’m hearing him correctly. Doesn’t he know how serious this is? I could have been killed, and they’re going to kill him too… 

“Finn, you’re going to be ok. I wouldn’t have let you stay here if I wasn’t absolutely sure-”

“Poe, I want to go to the hospital!” I demand, sitting up, determined to walk there myself if he won’t take me. 

“Finn, you need to sit down,” he insists, trying to gently take ahold of my arm. 

I yank away from him, trying to shove him away, but it turns out I don’t have too much strength on my side at the moment, so all I really do is nudge him back a bit. His eyes still look hurt nonetheless. 

“What, you don’t want me going to the hospital because you’re afraid I’m going to _tell on you?_”__

_ _“No,” he shakes his head quickly, his eyes widening in concern. “Finn, this has nothing to do with you at all, I trust you with my life. But if the cops are involved in this in anyway…”_ _

_ _I shake my head in amazement, feeling a deep sense of betrayal, despite knowing that going to the cops is risky for him. But I thought perhaps his and my safety would outweigh that. _ _

_ _“I know you’re worried about losing your club,” I spit at him, my eyes glaring daggers into his, “but if we don’t do something to protect ourselves, they are going to kill both of us.”_ _

_ _“What do you mean?” he asks, his brow creasing in confusion. “Is that… is that what Jones told you? He wants me dead?”_ _

_ _“He wants you to turn yourself in, or they’re all going to find us and kill us,” I inform him. “And they’ve proven they have the capacity to do that. So I don’t know about you, but I think going to the police, with my concussion and fucking broken ribs as evidence, we might be able to get some protection.” _ _

_ _Poe’s face falls as he takes in this information, not seeming surprised by it, but looking as if knowing this might change things. _ _

_ _“We need to tell the police, Poe,” I try to plead with him. “And I need to get to a hospital and get some… I don’t know, a fucking perscription or something, whatever you're supposed to do.”_ _

_ _“You don’t understand, Finn,” Poe says, resting his face in his hands as his eyes close in distress. _ _

_ _“I really wish people would stop telling me how I don’t understand, and instead just fucking explain what it is I don’t understand,” I vent heatedly, rubbing my palm against my forehead. _ _

_ _“If you go to the police,” he starts, dropping his hands and looking up at me tiredly, “or the hospital, or anyone, they’ll know. Jones has connections all over the city, even outside the city. Some I probably don’t even know about. If you go to anyone, they’ll know. And they will kill you, whether I comply with their demands or not.” _ _

_ _I stare at him for a moment as he worriedly rests his elbows on the bed, wringing his hands together. _ _

_ _“He’s no doubt informed all of his colleagues of who you are, or else he wouldn’t have gone after you. If you go to the wrong hospital, or even happen to get the wrong doctor or something… they’d probably just give you a lethal injection and put your body in the mortuary room. No one would raise an eyebrow.”_ _

_ _What terrifies me more than his words is how he speaks them. As if this has happened before. _ _

_ _As usual, I don’t know what to say. _ _

_ _“I’m so sorry, Finn,” his voice sounding as beat down as I feel. “I shouldn’t have brought you into all of this. I’m sorry… I’m sorry you got hurt… I never wanted this…” _ _

_ _I reach over to touch my hand to his face, pulling him up to look at me._ _

_ _“I don’t blame you, Poe,” I reassure him, wiping away a tear that falls down his face. “I’m sorry, I’m just… I’m really scared. For both of us.”_ _

_ _His hand reaches up to cover mine, his fingers gently stroking over mine. _ _

_ _“I want to kill them,” he tells me, the fire rising again in his eyes, venom in his voice. “I swear Finn, I’m going to make them pay for what they did to you. If turning myself into them is what Jones wants, I’ll do it. And I’ll rip his fucking throat out.” _ _

_ _I shake my head, stroking his cheek. _ _

_ _“Getting yourself killed isn’t what I want, Poe.”_ _

_ _I glance around the warm hotel room, recalling all the beautiful moments Poe and I shared, laying together in bed, talking about an assortment of little, meaningless things. How my day was, what new food had shipped to the kitchen, what crazy rich guest Poe had a ridiculous story to tell about. _ _

_ _“I just want this,” I smile at him, feeling any leftover pain drop away. Which could be due to the painkillers kicking in, but I choose to believe it’s the reassurance and safety I feel being here with him. “I want to be with you. I love you.” _ _

_ _He’s startled by my words, I can tell. But a look of unmatched joy soon washes over his face, his eyes lighting up like two stars. _ _

_ _I smile as he nearly jumps into my lap, though still careful about not touching my ribs, and presses his warm lips to mine, sending a soothing thrill shooting through my chest. _ _

_ _

_ _I stay at the club for the several days it takes for me to heal. I have to call work and email all of my professors to tell them I’ve become incredibly ill and won’t be able to come in for at least two weeks. I worry this will either get me fired, or get me kicked out of school or something, but Poe tells me that he is going to send someone to “explain” things to my superiors. So apparently, Jones isn’t the only one who has connections all over the area. _ _

_ _The first time I get a look at my sliced up face, I nearly pass out again, but a few days with keeping the stitches in, and it’s nothing but dull scars. But it takes more than a week before I can stand even resting a hand against any part of my head or face. _ _

_ _My ribs feel good enough to have the bandages off after a week but they remain sore. The same with my ankle, though I try not to walk on it when I don’t have to._ _

_ _I feel like all I eat is painkillers, which I take down like popcorn every hour. I’m sure it’s not good for me, but since I have no way of getting more proper medication, it’s all I have. _ _

_ _Poe never leaves my side. I think a part of it’s because he wants to make sure I’m healing ok, but another part is that he doesn’t want this to happen again. And I certainly welcome his constant company for both reasons. _ _

_ _Rey either stays at Kylo’s apartment, or at the club. And Poe sends people to watch the boarding house a couple times a day to make sure the girls are ok, even though it’s doubtful Jones would send anyone after them. _ _

_ _We all know it’s only a matter of time before Jones attacks. Poe, Kylo, and Vera are on guard every night, with all the employees being warned of the situation and asked to keep an eye out. A few of them quit, which Poe holds no resentment towards. After all, it’s only fair to be straight up with your employees when you know there is a violent gangster out to get you. _ _

_ _The only thing Poe and Vera think to do is keep things running as always. There’s always the small chance Jones might call everything off, but it’s not likely. So it’s just a matter of waiting now._ _


	22. Chapter 22

“Are you scared?” I ask Poe as we both sit at the bar in the back of the theater, watching tonight’s show. It’s Friday, just over two weeks since my attack. 

Poe leans against the counter, a glass of scotch in one hand as he stares mindlessly at the lit up stage. 

“I’m scared of losing you,” he answers, his voice barely rising over the booming music coming from the band and the cheers of the crowd as they view the display on the stage. 

Tonight’s theme is Salem witches. The stage is lit only with a deep, blood red light that glows eerily through the darkened room.. The dancers are dressed in shimmering black, matching the sharp clean cut black wigs that shimmer in the stage lights. 

Glittering sets dress the platform, decorated with billowing streams of crisp red and orange fabric that act as flames, licking at whatever dancer is standing atop the glistening stake. 

It’s quite a spectacle, as always. 

“You won’t lose me,” I answer him, reaching over to take his hand. “I just… I want to make sure you’re ok.” 

I flinch as he takes a drink from his glass, his eyes staying fixed on the stage, but looking past the dancers. 

“You know that I love you, right?” 

“Of course,” I reply, aghast that he has to ask me still. “What is that supposed to mean?”

The crowd gasps in unison as the dancer on the stake suddenly sprouts angel wings from her back, invisible wires rising her high into the air as the male dancers below her drop to their knees dramatically. 

“I just want to make sure you know,” he speaks, keeping his tone low, even among the sudden wave of noise. 

Before I can ask him what he’s really trying to say, Vera comes rushing over to us, looking sharp and attentive as always. Tonight, she wears a half sleeved, form fitting dress dyed a soft emerald green, sparkling lightly as she moves in the quickened, choppy movement she always makes. 

Her hair is pinned up as always, revealing the jet black choker wrapped around her throat, making her look all the more regal. 

“Car’s outside,” she speaks to Poe before looking to me. “You should go upstairs.”

A shiver of fear goes through me as Poe and I stand up from our seats, Poe nearly dropping his glass to the ground. 

“Do we have eyes on them?” he asks, his hand going around my waist, ready to lead me away, as he did the two other times we had an alarm such as this. 

“Gerald and Tony saw them enter the East door.”

“How many?”

“Three. Bartenders recognized two of them. It’s Bronsan and Karris. The last one’s a skinny blonde haired guy, but dressed the same.” 

“Where’s Rey?” I ask worriedly, remembering she’s still in the dance club with Kylo. 

Before he can answer me, a group of men come bursting through the entrance, past the guards who try to stop them as they shove their way through. 

Poe pulls me behind him as I study the three men who have entered.

The leader, of course, is the pointy faced, black bearded Bronsan, his angry eyes washing over the scene in excitement, as if he’s just happened upon a feast. Behind him are the lanky man and the more handsome faced one, who I guess would be Karris. 

Just the sight of them chills me to the bone, and I find myself clinging onto Poe’s hand. 

“I’m taking Finn upstairs,” he says, his hand shaking violently as he stares off after the three well dressed men slinking into the theater, not giving us a second glance. 

“I can’t go without Rey,” I tell him as he turns back to me, ready to shuffle me out of here and to the elevator in the next room. 

“Poe,” Vera speaks in a warning tone as her eyes trail the group that is now walking toward the front of the stage. 

“We need to get everyone out,” Kylo suddenly speaks from behind us, making me jump, though I’m relieved to see Rey standing beside him. 

“Is there anyone else outside?” I hear Poe ask as Rey and I embrace. 

“Are you alright?” she whispers.

“I’m ok,” I assure her. “But Kylo’s right… we need to get everyone out of here.” 

“I’ll give the signal,” Vera nods before pacing rapidly around the side of the room, toward the stage where she’ll give her signal she’d been practicing with the dancers and the band that will cue them to bring the show to a quick and early close. 

“Code red,” Kylo nods to the server who comes up to the bar with an empty tray. Her eyes go wide, as if to ask him if this is for real. “Spread the word, discreetly,” he nods at her. 

The “code red” was set up as a signal to the employees to start getting themselves safely out, no questions asked. 

The young women ungracefully plops the tray down on the counter before rushing off, trying to look casual as she goes around to pass the signal to the other servers. 

“Go upstairs with Rey,” Poe tells me, my heart pounding as we hear the music hit one epic final note before the theater erupts in applause.

“I’m not leaving you here,” I persist, grabbing onto his arm insistently. 

The lights go up as a few of the black suited guards begin to sneak forward toward the three men who are now standing very close to the stage. Bronsan has his arms crossed, staring not so subtly at the dancer closest to him, licking his lips. They all look relaxed. Not worried at all. 

“Poe…” I speak, my voice hardly able to come out in a whisper, pushed down by the sickening fear in the pit of my stomach. 

“Get upstairs,” he tells me, the same level of fear in his tone. 

“Not without you,” I refuse, a horrifying suspicion coming over me that I will not see him again if I leave him here now. 

He looks infinitely distressed at my insistence, but eventually just nods. 

“Stay here until I come to get you,” he says, going behind the counter to pick up a phone, dialing something quickly.

“Don’t be silly,” Rey shakes her head, snatching up my hand. “We’ll help get everyone out.” 

“Don?” Poe answers the phone. “I need you to shut off the music and turn on the emergency lights, everywhere but the theater.”

Kylo goes into the dance club, Vera stays here in the theater, and Rey and I go into the gameroom.

It’s quite a different scene in here with the blinding white emergency lights on, igniting the entire room in a sharp alabaster that really peels away the mysterious atmosphere. 

“Everyone, stay calm,” Rey immediately starts, keeping her tone soothing and natural. “We are completely safe, let’s just get everyone moving toward the back exit, please.”

Two servers are at the door we just came through right away, stopping anyone from going out through the theater. 

“Back exit only, everyone start moving to the back,” I announce, trying to keep my voice as calming as Rey’s. 

Surprisingly, between us and the staff, we manage to get a large chunk of the crowd out the door, no problem.

However, we have to brush off many dirty looks and backhanded comments. And people who look as if they’d actually like to physically backhand us as we lead them away from their games. 

“Young man, may I inquire as to what in the world is going on?” one particularly snobbish looking man asks as I try ushering him and his wife toward the exit. 

“I’m sorry sir, we really just need you to exit through here,” I direct him, trying to disguise the anxiousness on my face. 

The man huffs at me and continues on his way. 

“Everyone’s out of the restaurant,” I hear one of the servers say just as we’re gathering up, what should be, the last round of people. “We all need to leave through the kitchen when we’ve finished here.”

“Go now,” I hear Rey tell the two scared looking ladies. “We can handle everyone in here. Make sure all the staff know to leave.”

They both nod, their mouths slightly agape at this woman they’ve never met before completely taking control of the situation, as Rey likes to do. 

I shake my head as they run off.

“They should’ve put you in charge of security,” I inform her. She grins proudly. 

After we’ve got everyone out and at least moving in the direction of their cars, she and I rush back into the theater. 

I see Vera and Poe doing their best to inconspicuously lead everyone to the back exit, which I can tell the three men are already catching onto, despite the chaos. 

“Come on,” Rey whispers, rushing to help shuffle people along. 

I follow her lead, ignoring how my blood goes cold when I feel eyes on me as I try getting a group of particularly unruly men to get up from the table and head for the exit. 

It’s much more difficult in here because the emergency lights aren’t on, and everyone is all riled up from the show. 

“You should have done as you were told, Dameron!” Bronsan suddenly hollars from across the room, still in his place in front of the stage. 

Everyone stops to look over at him as my heart practically stops in my chest.

He reaches into his jacket pocket, pulling out the shiny black pistol he’d had pointed against my neck all those nights ago. 

Everything seems to move in slow motion as the man shouts something else, a cruel smile creeping along his face as I realize his eyes are on me and he’s raising the tip of the gun in my direction. 

I’m frozen as people start screaming, suddenly shoving to be the first ones to get to the door at the sight of the weapon. 

Bodies slam into me, jolting me as I stand with my feet planted firmly in the ground, my stomach sinking as all sound drops away. 

I hear the vague noise of someone shouting, getting closer as I stare at the end of the gun, far across the room from me, but close enough for a speeding bullet to easily get to me. 

Something hard crashes into my side, knocking me right off my feet until I slam down onto my side, my head painfully smacking the floor. 

A wave of pain brings me snapping back to reality, my body remembering all the agony it had been in two weeks ago as I’m sent colliding against the floor. 

Screaming fills the air followed by the boom of a gunshot, making me jump against Poe, who is now laying himself on top of me. 

I glance up through the sea of people, scrambling this way and that, to see that a handful of guards had gotten to the man before he could shoot me, grabbing his arm and pointing it straight up, where the gun had proceeded to shoot down one of the beaded chandeliers. 

“EVERYBODY OUT, NOW!” Vera’s terrifying voice thunders through the room, reverberating even past all the screaming and the sound of the chandelier bits raining onto the floor. 

“Finn?!” I hear Rey calling to me, somewhere among the hoard of people. 

More gunshots go off, and more screaming ensues. 

Most of the people have cleared out by now, and I see two guards laying on the ground, one writhing in pain as blood seeps from his stomach. The other one doesn’t move at all. 

I hear someone pounding against the door leading into the dance club, and a few more people have stopped at the door exiting out to the parking lot, yanking at it curiously as it refuses to budge. 

“Unlock the fucking doors!” I hear Poe scream to someone. 

“No use calling for your security man now, Dameron,” the lanky man laughs as he begins crossing the room toward us. “We’re in control now.” 

I’m yanked up harshly, Poe’s hands gripping onto my jacket as he pulls the both of us to a standing position. 

“Run,” he orders as the lanky man gets closer. 

He releases me and turns to charge towards the cackling man heading for us, leaving me to wonder where exactly I’m supposed to run to if we’re all locked in here. 

The lanky man swings at Poe, but he’s not even close. 

I stand, shell shocked as I watch Poe duck and swing, his fist connecting wickedly with the man’s throat, before he grabs him by the collar and brings his knee crashing into his face, sending the stringy blonde haired man tumbling to the ground, just as surprised as I am. 

“I shouldn’t expect anything less from you, Bronsan!” Poe yells over to where the elvish man is standing. “Sending one of your fucking newbies after me?”

Bronsan, just laughs, his pointed face grinning with incredulity. 

“So the whore has some fight in him,” he nods. “I’d forgotten. Since the only times I’d ever see you were whenever Jones was beating you to a pulp.” 

He steps forward, his eyes trained on Poe as I move up behind him, wanting to do something to help, but not knowing what. 

“And that was quite often, wasn’t it?” Bronsan continues, cocking his head slightly as if to taunt him.

His eyes crawl over to me as I glare furiously back at him through all the people running this way and that, picturing smashing that cocky grin with my foot. 

“I think your little pet doesn’t like what he’s hearing, Dameron,” Bronsan nods back toward me, his expression feigning sorrow. “Should I tell him more? About how almost every man in the city got to fuck you, and you had to just lay there and take it like the little bitch you-”

My feet are driving myself forward as a sharp growl tears through my throat. Something entirely instinctual and almost animal-like takes over me in an instant as I shoot past Poe, and dive right into the wretched man, leaping on him like a feral beast, my nails scratching into his face like claws, before striking him with my hands, knees, feet, and anything that comes to mind. 

I’m only vaguely aware that the gun has dropped from his hand during my attack, a factor I had completely forgotten about, or perhaps ignored entirely, as my only focus seems to be ripping this man to shreds. 

It’s not long before I feel a slight bit of warm liquid on my fists, which begins anchoring me back down to reality, knowing that this won’t keep up forever and that this much more experienced fighter will get a handle on me in a few seconds. It was only surprise that had been on my side. 

Sure enough, I feel his fist connect with the side of my head, knocking me into a daze, enough to allow him to shove me off of him. 

When I expect to fall back onto the floor, I feel myself tumble back into a strong pair of arms that steady me back onto my feet. 

I shake the dizziness out of my head, forcing myself to stay alert as Bronsan brushes himself off as well. 

“So that’s why you like him,” he huffs, as if he’s just discovered the answer to something he’d been yearning to know. “The boy’s got a little bit of fire in him too.”

He’d sneakily snatched up the gun again, pointing it straight at me before Poe shoves me behind him, holding his arms out slightly to shield me. 

We hear doors behind us burst open and both turn to see a small, but significant group of men dressed in fine black striped suits and fedoras marching into the club from the game room, guns drawn, causing the remaining group of people locked in here to run wild again, despite Vera’s desperate attempts to try and get everyone to stand by the doors. 

How did they get in here?

My eyes search madly through the bumbling crowd to try and locate Rey, but my attention is hardly able to focus on any one person among the tons of them that are running in circles for their lives, like a group of chickens with their heads cut off. 

“This is all on you, Dameron,” Bronsan continues, stepping closer to us with his gun drawn while the other gangsters start pointing their weapons at all of the terrified guests and dancers, getting them to line up against the wall on the left side of the room. Vera lines up with them, still attempting to keep everyone calm by following her assured lead. “You’ve dragged this out and pissed us all off sufficiently enough. And I think it’s rather fitting we have everyone here to witness your downfall.” 

The lanky man is finally getting back up, looking like he’s just been hit by a truck rather than simply had the wind knocked out of him. 

Karris, who doesn’t look nearly as charismatic while he’s brandishing a gun of his own, steps away from helping the others with the group of people who are now hostages, his eyes looking murderous as he comes toward us.

“Jones won’t mind if we shoot his leg off before he gets here, will he?” he asks as he glares at Poe viciously while stalking over to us. 

“Unfortunately, we can only injure you if you try to escape,” Bronsan says, still staring at Poe with gleeful satisfaction. “But I’m sure he won’t mind if you’re brought before him with a broken bone or two.” 

I jump when I hear a gunshot go off, coming from behind us. 

Poe’s arm is around me as we both duck down, the bullet zinging right past us and hitting Karris in the shoulder. 

He flies backward, holding his wound as he cries out in pain and shock, gaping in disbelief at whoever is behind us. 

We both turn around to see Rey, stepping out from under one of the tables where she had been hiding apparently. 

She looks to be holding one of the small guns the guards had all been armed with, and is now pointing it confidently at Bronsan, despite the number of other guns now pointed at her. 

“Now now,” Bronsan sighs, as if this whole ordeal is only slightly frustrating. “We don’t have time for a game of standoff, honey. Drop the gun or we’ll blow your head off.”

“Rey, drop it,” Poe commands, his voice sounding suddenly fearful as his eyes plead with her to comply. 

“Stay back!” Vera orders the group standing against the wall, as they start to look like they want to disperse again at the sight of more guns and the sudden distracted state of their captors. She stands defiantly in front of them, her arms held out to encourage them back up against the wall. 

“Tell your men to drop their guns and I won’t blow your head off,” Rey replies, unshaken. 

“That’s not going to happen,” he responds in an impatient and bored tone. 

“Rey,” Poe calls to her again. “Put. It. Down.”

I know she won’t. 

“Rey,” I whisper, my eyes wide with fear. 

“Fuck you,” she spits at Bronsan, her fiery eyes searing hatefully into him as she pulls the trigger again. 

The only sound that fills the air is a click. 

My blood goes cold as Rey’s eyes widen in confusion, staring down at the suddenly uncooperative weapon in her hands. 

“Shit,” Poe whispers. 

“Poe, what the hell?” Rey asks in outrage, before Bronsan walks forward, grabs her arm and throws her back towards us, aiming his weapon at all three of us. 

“The guns can only shoot one bullet,” Poe explains, looking as if he wants to slap his palm to his forehead. “You have to reload them each time.”

“Why in the hell would you buy guns that only shoot once?!” Rey asks him, throwing the usueless gun to the ground.

“Because they were the only ones we could afford to supply to everyone!” Poe defends himself. 

“Oh, you’ve gotta be _kidding_ me!” I exclaim, half in frustration, and half maybe in hysteria. “I- _gah_!”__

_ _We all duck down as Bronsan shoots another bullet into the ceiling, sending small chunks of the building showering down on us. _ _

_ _“All of you shut the fuck up,” he bellows, sounding amazed by our sudden bickering. _ _

_ _“Shit!” Karris shouts, staring down at his injured arm. _ _

_ _“Get behind the bar,” Poe whispers to Rey and I quietly as Bronsan turns slightly to glance back at Karris. “And stay close to the ground.” _ _

_ _Before I can protest or ask him what the hell he has planned with all these guns on us, he leaps forward, kicking the gun right out of Bronsan’s hand and tackling him to the ground. _ _

_ _I grab Rey’s hand as guns start firing around us, heading for the counter of the bar that’s only a couple feet away. _ _

_ _But she runs forward, yanking herself out of my grasp. _ _

_ _I skid to a halt as I gaze at her in horror while she slides across the floor, reaching to grab Karris’ fallen gun. He tries to swipe at her, but she easily evades him, and he starts wildly calling for everyone to shoot her, but they’re too confused about what to do with Poe, whom I guess they’re forbidden to shoot, but who is also currently wrestling with their ring leader. _ _

_ _Rey scampers back over to me, pulling me behind the counter. _ _

_ _She fires a couple shots to ward off anyone trying to follow us before ducking down next to me. _ _

_ _“What do we do?” I ask her as she checks to see how many bullets are in the gun. “And how in the hell did you learn how to work a gun?”_ _

_ _“Kylo taught me,” she explains, her voice sounding chipper and confident as always, calming my nerves a bit. “After what happened, he thought I should know how to use one.”_ _

_ _She glances nervously over towards the door that leads to the dance club, where Kylo had been locked in. _ _

_ _“You don’t think… could there be more of them…”_ _

_ _She struggles to explain her fears, and I do my best to give her a convincing reassuring look. _ _

_ _“I’m sure he’s fine,” I tell her. “Have you met him? I’d be terrified to try and fight him.” _ _

_ _She gives a small grin before getting her game face back on. _ _

_ _“Ok. How many did you count out there?”_ _

_ _“Was I supposed to be counting?” I ask, feeling the way I used to when I accidentally forgot a homework assignment. “I haven’t really been in a situation like this before…”_ _

_ _She suddenly shoots up onto her knees, aiming the gun out at the chaos and firing a couple more times. _ _

_ _“Christ!” I whisper heatedly as she sits back down. “How are you doing this?”_ _

_ _“You will not believe the levels of adrenaline shooting through me right now,” she replies, checking her ammunition again. “Almost out. I counted eight, not including the one Poe is throwing hands with now. I think I got at least one of them.”_ _

_ _“Rey. Don’t you think they will probably know that you’re almost out of bullets if you stole one of their guns?”_ _

_ _She stares straight ahead, her lips a straight line. _ _

_ _“Crap.” _ _

_ _I bite down my instincts that tell me to curl up into a ball and close my eyes, and follow Rey’s lead and climb up onto the counter. _ _

_ _Sure enough, we have six guys heading straight for us. _ _

_ _Rey shoots the rest of the bullets, hitting one guy right in the chest. She then chucks the gun right at another one’s face before they get a chance to fire at her._ _

_ _No knowing what else to do, I duck down and snatch up one of the heavy bar stools. _ _

_ _Using my adrenaline fueled strength, I heave the thing up and toss it at two of the guys coming our way. _ _

_ _Taking advantage of a couple of the men reloading their guns, Rey jumps down into the bar and grabs two bottles off the shelves, hurling them out in front of her._ _

_ _I watch in satisfaction as they shatter right against their heads. _ _

_ _I grab another barstool and haul it up onto the counter, using it as cover as Rey stays behind the bar, handing me bottles and glasses while I start chucking them at high speed, keeping the oncoming group of gangsters a comfortable distance away, while at the same time dodging oncoming bullets. _ _

_ _From here, I can see Poe throwing Bronsan into every single table in the theater, followed by Bronsan picking up said tables and throwing them at Poe. The both of them look pretty bloodied by now. _ _

_ _After about a minute, we have a good chunk of our attackers knocked into a daze until there are only two left. _ _

_ _“Fuck,” I curse as the two of them close in, guns loaded and at the ready. I throw my bar stool at them in a last pathetic attempt to distract them so that maybe Rey can run off. _ _

_ _She fortunately follows my direction and runs out from around the bar once the two men turn toward me, grinning in triumph as I sit here on the counter like an idiot, completely out of options._ _

_ _I see Rey skid to a stop at one of the guys she had nailed with a bottle of tequila, swiping up the gun laying next to him. _ _

_ _She brings her arms up, shooting two quick bullets, hitting one of the guys in the back and skimming one of them on the side of the leg. She has to shoot a couple more times before hitting him sufficiently in the leg so that he can’t stand. The other one I think is dead._ _

_ _Rey reaches into the unconscious guy’s jacket to grab something, then runs back over to me, pulling me back behind the counter again. _ _

_ _“Are you ok?” I ask her, realizing that she’s killed at least a few people just now. _ _

_ _“Let’s not think about it,” she shakes her head, checking over the ammunition she’d just grabbed from the man. “Let’s just keep going.”_ _

_ _I nod quickly in agreement. _ _

_ _“Alright, that’s quite enough!” I hear a loud voice suddenly call out. _ _

_ _I freeze, immediately recognizing who it is as my blood goes cold._ _


	23. Chapter 23

All the noise in the room suddenly slows into silence as footsteps move across the floor. 

“Jesus, what in the hell happened here? These are supposed to be some of my best men.”

There’s more movement and then someone suddenly grunts in pain. 

“Alright, Finn Storm!” I hear Jones call out. “I don’t know how you managed to take out so many of my men, but the fun’s over. Come on out with your hands up, and I won’t hurt Dameron. Yet.” 

“Finn, stay where you are!” I hear Poe call to me. 

“I’ve got a blade to his throat Mr. Storm, so it’s up to you if I slit him open now, which none of us really want.” 

“Stay here, I don’t think he knows you’re down here,” I tell Rey quietly as I hear someone mutter something.

“The girl too, Mr. Storm!”

“Damn it.”

“It’s ok, Finn,” Rey says, placing her hand on my shoulder. “Let’s just do what he says… we’re gonna find a way out of this.” 

I take a deep breath, and she sets the gun down before we both stand up slowly, our hands raised up. 

I see Jones standing a few feet in front of us, in front of the mess of tables. He’s surrounded by the few surviving men, that includes Karris and the lanky man, and also with a couple of his own men, consisting of Miggs and the two bodyguards I saw with him the night they had kidnapped me. 

My throat closes and a ripple of anger surges through me when I see Bronsan standing beside him, his fist gripping a handful of Poe’s hair, holding his neck out as he presses a shiny silver blade against his skin. 

Poe’s hands hang weakly onto the arm pushing a blade into his throat. Blood is running down the side of his head and there’s a small cut on his lip. But what scares me the most is the despair in his eyes once he sees Rey and I surrender. 

“Your weapon, if you please,” Jones nods towards us. “Slowly. Or I’ll be forced to have you shot down.” 

Rey slowly reaches down to where she thought she could hide the gun, placing it carefully on the counter, where Miggs walks forward to collect it. 

“Thank you,” Jones seems to sigh in relief. “That wasn’t so hard. Now, I don’t blame you for fighting against my men, I’m sure this was all… very shocking.” 

Miggs and one of the bodyguards walk up to us, grabbing onto our arms and leading us out from behind the bar. 

“Surprised to see you’re still alive,” Miggs, the one holding me whispers darkly. “How’s the ankle?”

His foot juts forward, kicking sharply against my ankle in a way that would have sent me buckling to the ground, if he hadn’t been gripping my arm.

“Don’t fucking touch him!” Poe shouts, pushing away from Bronsan’s hold, only for the devilish man to grip him tighter, pushing the blade into his neck enough to draw a small trickle of blood. 

Miggs huffs, sounding disappointed, before shoving me away from him, into Rey’s arms as he and the bodyguard walk back over to Jones and the others, keeping their guns trained on us. 

“Here’s the deal,” Jones starts, beginning his pacing that somehow feels as if you’re waiting for a bomb to go off with every step he takes. “I can’t let you leave here alive, of course. And I’m afraid I will not be able to grant Dameron the mercy of a quick death. But as for you two… I’m willing to have you both shot in the head, nice and quick. If you’d just follow two of my men outside, quietly.” 

“I’ll do her,” the lanky man nods toward Rey, an animalistic look going through his face. 

“I’m doing her,” Karris growls, no longer holding his wound, but still shaking off a line of blood running down his arm. “She nearly fucking shattered my shoulder.” 

I don’t know what to do. There’s no way I’m leaving Poe. I don’t care what they do to me. But Rey… 

“Well, we’re not leaving,” Rey states, staring straight at Jones without a tremor of doubt. “So I guess you’ll have to think up some pretty fucking creative ways to kill us.”

I appreciate Rey’s confidence in this situation, but I really don’t think she should provoke things like that with these people. 

Jones sighs, shaking his head in disappointment. 

“I was afraid so,” he bemoans. 

“Jones, please let them go,” Poe pleads, his hands digging against Bronsan’s arm. “Let everyone go, it’s me you want, and now you have me.” 

Jones slowly turns his head to him, looking him over as if he were seeing him for the first time. 

“Right you are, Dameron. I wanted you, and now I have you. Along with your partner, your little boyfriend, and a slew of your guests, that I will execute one by one while you sit here and watch.” 

He walks closer to Poe and Bronsan releases his hold on him. 

Poe steadies himself as he gazes up at Jones, seeming to beg with his eyes in a way that frightens me. 

After a couple seconds of just staring down at him, Jones’ arm raises as quick as a flash, striking Poe across the face, with so much force it looks as if he’s trying to knock his head right off of his neck. 

I run forward as Poe falls to the ground, only to be yanked back up from the collar of his shirt by Bronsan. 

The two bodyguards jump towards me, catching me and holding me back just before I can get to Poe. 

“Not so high and mighty now are you, little whore?” Bronsan whispers down to Poe before pulling his gun back out from his jacket, slamming it against Poe’s already injured head. 

“Leave him alone!” I snarl, fighting against the arms holding me back. 

“Jones, stop this!” Vera suddenly shouts from her place standing with the trapped guests and dancers. 

Jones turns toward her as she slowly steps forward, minding the guns now aimed at her. 

“Listen, we all understand this is very personal business,” she speaks, sounding surprisingly calm. “But it’s nothing that needs to be settled in front of all these innocent people.” She gestures back at the trembling people standing up against the wall. “How about we just let them go, and we’ll all work this out amongst ourselves? Surely you can’t expect them to get you into any kind of trouble.” 

I see a look of consideration go over Jones’ face. I’m sure he knows he can get away with killing these people or letting them go, at least if he has his hooks as deep into the police as Poe seems to think. 

“Perhaps you’re right, Ms. Gorski.”

Bronsan looks almost horrified at this. 

“But boss… we can’t just-”

“There’s no use in creating a bigger mess to clean up,” Jones tells him sternly. “Dameron will suffer enough with what we have planned for him anyway, no need for any extra executions.” 

He nods to the two bodyguards.

“Let them out. See to it they aren’t hanging around.” 

The two men nod, showing no signs of emotion as always, heading over to the unsure looking small crowd, who probably aren’t positive if they’re about to be shot or not. 

Vera keeps a watchful eye on them, her hands on her hips as if she were viewing another one of the dance performances. . 

“Bring him here,” Jones nods towards me. 

Miggs steps forward eagerly, grabbing my arms and hauling me closer to the group while Karris and the lanky man walk forward to grab ahold of Rey when she tries to follow. 

Miggs holds me in front of Jones as Bronsan grips tighter onto Poe’s hair, holding him still as Jones steps up to me, looking me over almost with remorse.

I cry out through gritted teeth when Jones’ fist crashes into my ribs, resulting in the feeling that the bones have been re-cracked. 

“You son of a bitch!” Poe screams, sending a spike of paralyzing fear through me at his sudden ferociousness. “If you want your fucking revenge just kill me!” 

“You should know how this works by now, Dameron,” Jones tells him as Miggs and the two bodyguards force me to the ground, the bodyguards holding my arms and legs down while Miggs reaches up to grab the switchblade from Bronsan. 

“You didn’t want to listen when we beat the hell out of him last time,” Miggs says, inspecting the shiny silver blade as I try squirming away from the steel hands holding me down, my heart trying to force its way out of my throat. “So maybe you’ll listen if we kill him.”

“Stop!” Rey screams, fighting to run towards me before being thrown to the ground by the lanky man who climbs on top of her. 

“Shut the hell up, bitch,” he hisses, slamming his fist down against her face. 

“Get off of her!” I yell, twisting against the grip of the bodyguards. 

“Let me ask you something, Dameron,” Jones suddenly begins casually as Poe thrashes to get out of Bronsan’s grip as he presses a gun to the side of his head. “How many times do you think someone can be stabbed before they die?”

“You have to start in the lower abdomen,” Miggs grins down at me, pressing the tip of the blade against my stomach, just above my waist. 

My eyes close as my breathing comes out in desperate gasps, my pleas for them to stop sounding like nothing more than choked whispers. 

I can hear them still hurting Rey, and the sound of Poe’s screams as more men come to restrain him while I start to feel the blade dig into my stomach, easily tearing past my shirt and breaking my skin. 

I want to look at Poe, but I can’t open my eyes. I start to hear a ringing noise pierce through the air as the knife goes deeper into my stomach, which feels much like it felt when my ribs were broken. So as painful as it is, I can at least say it’s not anything new. 

A loud pounding noise suddenly thunders through the room, causing everyone to stop what they’re doing. 

I lift my head to follow everyone’s gaze toward the doors to the dance club that have suddenly burst open, banging against the walls. 

Kylo walks in, moving robotically, as if being controlled by something else. His eyes go straight to Rey, almost like he already knew exactly where she’d be. 

He walks to where the lanky man is still pinning Rey to the ground, one hand on her shirt where he had been tearing it, the other raised to strike her already battered face. Shiny black metal flashes in Kylo’s hand as he makes his way over. 

His hand closes around the back of the man’s skinny neck pulling him up off of Rey as he brings the black pistol up to his head, not even taking more than a second to pull the trigger. 

My eyes reflexively close before I can see the lanky man’s brains splatter across the floor.

Normally, given my initial aversion to Kylo Ren, I would have been horrified at what he’d just done. Acting as an emotionless executioner, nothing but a deathly glint in his eyes when he’d beared toward the man he decided so quickly to kill. 

But considering what that man had been doing to Rey, I’m ready to give Kylo a medal on the spot for what he did. 

I open my eyes to see him quickly aim his next shot at Karris, catching him in the other shoulder, before Kylo reaches into his back pocket to grab something, turning to toss it over to Vera, who catches the item as if she’d been prepared. 

She aims the gun he just threw her right at one of the bodyguards holding me down, who doesn’t get a chance to re-grab his gun before he’s shot directly in the chest. 

I roll out of the way before he can fall back on me, finding myself suddenly released as everyone rushes for their guns. 

Kylo yanks Rey up, shielding her behind him as he backs toward the door, shooting at Miggs as the burly man steps right over me, firing away at him and the room erupts in gunfire once more. 

Poe kicks Bronsan in the knee, managing to slip away from the group of men holding him in all the distraction. 

He grabs the fallen gun previously belonging to the dead bodyguard, then quickly kneels down beside me, cupping his hand around the back of my neck as he tries pulling me up. 

“Finn, you need to get up,” he encourages, trying to make his voice sound soothing, but also sounding as if he’s afraid we’re about to get shot at any second. He turns to fire a couple stray shots at whoever’s aiming for us. 

Breaking through my trance of horror, I force myself up from the floor, ignoring the sharp pain from the small stab wound. 

I cling onto Poe as he hauls me up, half dragging, half carrying me away to the mess of knocked over tables, kneeling us down behind them. 

“Let me see,” he whispers, moving my shirt out of the way to look over my wound. 

“It’s not bad,” I try to assure him, following his gaze to the small line of blood coming from the incision on my lower abdomen. 

“Stay here,” he orders, shoving the gun he’d been holding into my hand. 

I stare down at it wide eyed as he peeks up over the table. My hand wraps tentatively around the handle, my finger only touching against the trigger before practically throwing it onto the ground. 

“Poe, I can’t… I can’t shoot anybody,” I mumble, my voice lost among the shouting and gunfire. 

He glances back down at me, his expression looking suddenly incredibly conflicted, like he’s trying to decide what he should do with me, making me feel horribly sick. 

“Poe, it’s ok,” I tell him, nodding while trying to sound reassuring. “Go, I’ll be fine.” 

He kneels down beside me, his hand wrapping around the back of my neck as he presses his lips to my forehead. 

“I’m sorry,” is all he says before jumping up and around the table, running back out into the chaos. 

I quickly look up through the knocked over chairs to see him snatch up another gun from one of the fallen bodyguards. Most of the attention has now turned to him, especially Bronsan, though Jones seems to have suddenly disappeared. 

Vera seems to be handling herself quite well, not only with her gun, but also elbowing and pistol whipping anyone who gets close to her, which is quite terrifying to witness. 

Kylo and Rey seem to have fallen into some kind of routine, backed up against the wall, but easily defending themselves against their opponents, who have all seen to throw down their guns. Rey is ducking and kicking and clawing her way through the two men attacking her, and Kylo currently has Karris in a choke hold, while head butting the other man who had just run at him. 

“Dameron!”

Everyone stops and turns toward the bar, where Jones is standing, looking much less pristine than he usually does now that he doesn’t have a slew of intimidating bodyguards surrounding him. 

He raises some kind of bottle on his right hand, while flicking on a lighter in his other hand. 

“I warned you!” he shouts, his eyes boring into Poe. 

He brings the lighter to the bottle, suddenly igniting whatever’s inside it, before turning and looking me straight in the eye. 

My eyes go wide, and I stay frozen, long after he’s thrown the bottle my way, and I hear it crash into the mess of tables and chairs behind me followed by a steady roar of flames. 

“_Finn!_” __

_ _I don’t actually realize how close I am to the flames until I look behind me and am startled by the bright orange heat that pushes its way over me. _ _

_ _I turn back to see Poe running towards me, but Bronsan runs up behind him, tackling him to the ground. Miggs quickly joins him, the both of them struggling to hold Poe down as he thrashes against the ground. _ _

_ _“Stay still, you little whore,” Bronsan growls as he and Miggs pin him down to the ground, Miggs throwing a sharp punch to his stomach that knocks the wind out of him. _ _

_ _Something in Poe’s eyes suddenly changes. He suddenly ceases his struggling, his body going rigid. He looks so small and scared… terrified. His chest moves rapidly as he seems to gasp for breath. His hands shake as they lay pinned to the green and violet carpeted floor. _ _

_ _I picture him looking like this when he was younger. Alone and forced into a horrifying life that left him suffering, hurt, and lonely. I don’t know what just hit him right now, but I have a knowing feeling that he’s somehow remembering exactly how he had felt then. _ _

_ _The two men continue saying things to him and punching him, but I find I can’t hear anything as I stand up and walk over, the gun clutched in my hand. _ _

_ _Anger boils through me as I put both my hands around the handle, raising it steadily, an eerie calmness controlling my movements. _ _

_ _I aim the barrel towards the back of a head covered in pointy black hair. _ _

_ _I pull the trigger two times, just to be sure, knowing I’ve hit my target when I see red covering the back of Bronsan’s head as he slumps over onto the ground. _ _

_ _Before I know it, I’m laying on the ground, staring up at the ceiling millions of feet away from me after feeling as if something had shoved my shoulder and knocked me down. Soon after, it feels like someone stabbed a handful of needles into my left arm. _ _

_ _As I bring my hand up to touch against my now blood soaked shoulder and stare into the suddenly blazing lights of the mostly destroyed chandeliers, I realize I must have been shot._ _


	24. Chapter 24

My eyes open to the world tipping forward as someone hauls me up onto my feet, clinging onto me when I start to fall forward, or backward, or whatever direction I’m going. I could be upside down for all I know. 

“Finn, come on!” a woman’s voice calls to me, slightly muffled as I try to open my eyes all the way. “You need to move your feet, _now!_”__

_ _I turn to the person dragging me along to see something glowing red. It’s hard to breathe, and I find myself starting to choke, as if something is filling up my throat. _ _

_ _“Shoot the handles!” the person next to me shouts to someone. “Can you kick the door in?” _ _

_ _“Move!” I hear an angry voice boom out, before I feel the person holding me jump out of the way as a tall figure marches past us, towards what I guess is a door. _ _

_ _“Vera?” I ask, staring at the red-headed woman coming into view beside me. _ _

_ _“Finn?” she asks, putting her hand to my face and seeming to study me intensely with her vulture-like eyes. “Are you alright? Can you hear me?” _ _

_ _“Finn?” I hear Rey’s small voice ask from somewhere around me._ _

_ _Looking around, I can see we’re still in the mostly destroyed theater, which is currently still on fire, the flames now having trailed all the way to the stage, the curtains completely ignited and quickly filling the room with smoke, which explains my difficulty breathing. _ _

_ _“Poe,” I remember, struggling to turn and look around, my heart racing when I can only see a slew of dead bodies through the smoke in the room. “Poe?”_ _

_ _“Go,” I hear Kylo order, stepping away from the door he had just shot and kicked open. He reloads his gun as Rey grabs onto his arm. _ _

_ _“Kylo, I’m not leaving you-”_ _

_ _“You need to leave,” he tells her, turning to grab her arm and look her dead in the eyes. “I’m going to get Poe, and we’ll be right behind you.”_ _

_ _“Bullshit!” Rey replies. _ _

_ _“What happened to Poe?” I ask, trying to make my strangled voice sound intimidating, but I can’t get through the question without sounding like someone is choking me. _ _

_ _“Just go!” Kylo shouts to all of us, before turning back towards the maze of smoke, gun at the ready. _ _

_ _Remembering what Poe had looked like the last time I saw him, how petrified he was and recalling what he had always told me about how terrified he is of being alone, I shove myself away from Vera and take off running back into the theater before I can lose my balance and fall on my face. _ _

_I’m not leaving you, Poe. I promised…_

_ _ _ _ _ _“Finn, don’t!” Vera screams at me, grabbing onto Rey as she tries to go after me. I know Kylo is going to try and stop me as well, and he is probably much faster and definitely stronger than I am, so I push myself to sprint as fast as I can, unable to quite see where I’m going through the thickening sheet of smoke. _ _ _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I step past the dead bodies of Karris, Bronsan, and Miggs, trying to remember which one of them I had shot, wondering what happened to all the others while I was out for however long I was. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I soon have to skid to a halt when a figure suddenly appears in front of me, standing beside the bar._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The closer I look, I can see it’s actually two figures. One of them is Jones, holding a gun to Poe’s head, his other hand locked around his throat. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Stay right there,” he commands, pressing the gun harder against the side of Poe’s head._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Poe’s eyes are closed, but I can tell he’s still breathing by the small gasps he’s making around the fingers crushing his throat. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Please let him go,” I say worriedly, taking very small steps closer to them as Jones begins backing up, pulling Poe along with him. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Why do you think I’m here, Finn?” he asks, continuing to back toward the direction of the door to the gameroom. “What in the last half hour have you seen that would make you think I have any intention of letting Dameron off the hook this time?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I keep my eyes on Poe to keep myself from getting dizzy as Kylo walks up behind me, aiming his gun toward Jones._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Let him go,” he instructs, his eyes narrowing in a deadly glare, focusing on their target. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Now, Ren, I expect you to at least be smart enough to understand what’s going on,” he answers. It’s now that I notice he looks much more frazzled than before. Almost… nervous? _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You don’t think I can nail you right between the eyes before you even think about pulling that trigger?” Kylo asks him while I notice Poe’s eyes start to slowly blink open. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I don’t know, let’s find out,” he replies shortly. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Before anyone can do anything, Jones raises his gun away from Poe and shoots it straight at Kylo, hitting him in the side. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Kylo grunts out in pain as he drops to his knees, blood quickly flowing from the hole in his side, staining his blue shirt a deep red. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Another bullet tears the air, striking Kylo in his hand, making him drop his gun to the ground as blood splatters the ground. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I look back towards Jones to see him remove his hand from Poe’s neck to shove him towards me. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I catch him in my arms, nearly falling over myself once I raise my left arm, feeling the pain searing in my left shoulder like a knife. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Poe is able to put one arm around me, standing shakily on his feet, but leaning against me for support as Jones aims his gun at the two of us. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“So fucking shoot us,” Kylo grits, still holding his side that is continuing the bleed profusly. “And run, like the little bitch you are. Although your entourage has lessened significantly, I’d say.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“You have no idea how nice it is to have you like this, Dameron,” Jones grins, though I see his arm shaking as he aims the gun at us. “To have not only you, but your lover, and your best friend at my mercy. You do realize there’s nothing I couldn’t make you do right now.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Then I guess things haven’t much changed,” Poe answers, his voice sounding hoarse from the smoke inhalation. Jones continues backing towards the door to the gameroom, beginning to look a bit overwhelmed by the smoke as well. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Perhaps I may have underestimated a few things,” Jones admits as my eyes go to the ground, trailing over to where Kylo’s gun has fallen about an arm’s reach from where I’m standing. “But no matter.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He looks straight at me as my eyes go back up to him, a horribly risky plan forming in my mind. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“I’m going to wait until both your little friends bleed out,” he affirms, aiming the gun at my chest. “And then I’ll finish you off, Dameron. Only after I’ve shattered every bone in your body.” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I let myself fall backwards, pulling Poe with me. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _My ribs howl in pain once I collide with the ground and sandwich myself between Poe’s body and the hard floor, but I bite through it, reaching my arm out towards the gun, my fingers straining to grasp the handle. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _For one horrifying second, I think I’ve miscalculated this move and we’re both about to be shot by Jones, because I’ve now given him enough time to see what I’m trying to do. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _But somehow, to my surprise and relief, my middle finger is able to snag the metal, pulling it towards me until my palm can surround the warmed handle._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I turn myself around, Poe leaning out of the way, but still holding onto me as I zing the gun in front of me, aiming it up at Jones._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He just laughs. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Go ahead, kid,” he encourages. “Shoot me right in the head. Add another kill onto your list, it’s growing pretty fast tonight.”_ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I stare at him, my limbs locking into place as my brain races to try and remember what I had done. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _How many people did I shoot? Only one, I thought. Fuck… I killed someone. I’m holding a gun… _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _My brain chooses now to have trouble processing all of this. When I have one gun in my hand, and one pointed at my face. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“Come on, Finn,” he continues taunting as I gape at him, horrified at my sudden fear of moving. Of killing. “Don’t you want to? After everything I did to your sweet little boyfriend?” _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _Before I can even think of how to respond to him, a gunshot echoing through the room makes me nearly jump out of my skin._ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The bullet, fired from behind us, hits Jones right in the arm, immediately forcing him to lower his gun as he grits his teeth in anger. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I look behind me to see Vera standing behind us, slightly obscured by the smoke, holding a gun in the general direction of where Jones is standing, though she doesn’t look quite confident in her ability to aim. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _I don’t realize I’m still pointing the gun out in front of me until I feel Poe’s arm wrap around me, his hand curling around mine on the gun. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _“The pleasure’s mine,” I hear him whisper through gritted teeth as his index finger covers mine, moving down and pressing my finger down on the trigger. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _The gun jumps in my hand as a bullet flies across us right at Jones. Poe keeps it steady, his grip strong on my hand, forcing me to hold the weapon firmly, even after we see the bullet land right in the middle of Jones head. _ _ _ _

_ _ _ _He slumps forward, dead before he hits the floor._ _ _ _


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for everyone who read and commented. I was very surprised and happy to hear how much people enjoyed this story and I hope everyone enjoys the ending as well :)

I wake up feeling as if I’ve been sleeping for a week. Maybe more. Before I open my eyes, I consider if perhaps I was in some kind of a coma. But then I can’t remember what I would even be in a coma from.

It’s dark when my eyes finally peel open, only after I’ve regained consciousness for a long enough amount of time that I can at least remember who I am. I do nothing but stare up at the ivory popcorn ceiling for a while, blinking my eyes open and shut, slowly beginning to recognize the familiar scent in the room of cherry and chocolate. And… cat litter?

I move my head to the side, a low groan escaping my throat when I feel my incredibly stiff body feel as if it’s trying to rip itself to shreds. 

The curtains over the window are shut but the small line of light trickling through allows me to determine that the small bedroom I’m laying in is the one in Poe’s apartment. 

My shoulder aches with pain as I try to sit up, and I realize I can hardly move an inch from the position I’m in now, lying in the center of the small bed. 

I try looking down at myself to asses the damage, and notice my left arm is completely left free from the sleeve of the shirt I’m wearing. My shoulder is slathered in white bandages, and my arm is curled up into a sling. 

Aside from that, my throat burning slightly, and my body aching in a way that feels as if I’ve been sleeping on rocks for seven days, I think everything is ok. 

Glancing toward the closed door across from me, I hear someone gently pacing back and forth just outside the room, talking in a deep whisper to someone who I’m assuming is on the phone, since I hear no other voices. 

My eyes move to a small circle of suitcases sitting beside the door, and I try to recall if they were here when I stayed the night before. 

I start to remember what happened, but only briefly. I remember there was a fire at the club. That’s no doubt why my throat is still feeling sore. I remember Jones and his gang coming and… was I _shot?___

_ _The door suddenly opens, making my heart jump as I gaze at who’s standing in the doorway. _ _

_ _Poe looks much better than I feel, physically at least. He only has a small bandage on the side of his head and something wrapped around the top of his leg. His eyes however look red and hollowed, like he hasn’t slept and that he’s been… crying? _ _

_ _Looking at him, a lot more comes back to me. Mostly how he looked when he had been pinned to the ground… _ _

_ _He takes a step towards me, his mouth opening as he’s about to say something, but he jumps back as something skitters right past him, running into the room and leaping onto the bed, heading straight for me. _ _

_ _Poe laughs as I freeze in terror, only temporarily before I realize the creature attacking me is just a large orange cat. _ _

_ _“Um… sorry,” Poe smiles as he walks all the way into the room, closing the door behind him to shut out the bright light filling the rest of the apartment. BB-8 crawls up to my face, resting his front paws comfortably on my chest while he puts his whiskered face right up to my nose, his small pink tongue poking out to lick against my skin. _ _

_ _Poe reaches over and pulls him back as I find myself giving the feline a small grin. _ _

_ _“He’s kinda been… sitting with you for a couple days, waiting for you to wake up,” Poe informs me as he tries setting BB-8 down on the ground, only to have him paw his way back up onto the bed again to curl up next to my neck, his tail flapping around as he tries getting comfortable. _ _

_ _“I’ve been out for a couple of days?” I ask, straining to lift up my good arm and give BB-8 a pet on the back. _ _

_ _“You’ve been… kinda in and out for the past five days,” he answers his hands starting to wring together as he stares down at me, looking as if he’s afraid I’m going to fall right off the bed anytime I move. _ _

_ _“I’ve woken up before?” I question. _ _

_ _“Couple times, yeah. You weren’t too lucid though.” _ _

_ _He looks nervously away from me, his eyes racing back and forth as he seems to be trying to come up with the right explanation for me. _ _

_ _“I think you were mostly in shock. We had several doctors come and look at you, and everything is alright, your shoulder is healing just as it should. They think you were just probably in shock for the most part. You passed out right after we shot Jones…”_ _

_ _He obviously notices my expression at this news, because he quickly shakes his head, his eyes looking guilty. _ _

_ _“I’m sorry. It’s best we don’t discuss the details.” _ _

_ _“We shot someone?” I ask, removing my hand from BB-8 to rub my palm to my aching forehead. _ _

_ _“You don’t remember?” _ _

_ _“I do,” I nod reluctantly, letting my arm fall back to my side. “But it’s like… it’s like remembering a nightmare. There’s… holes. I can’t remember the entire thing.” _ _

_ _He nods in understanding, his hands still clasped together. _ _

_ _“Well, Jones is dead,” he continues. “Most of his top men, as well. I don’t know how we managed to pull that off. But luckily, the fire took care of most of the evidence, so none of us are going to be convicted of murder anytime soon. And anything that did come up, Kylo was able to take care of. He has a few connections with the cops, and… well, I guess some bribes took care of the rest.”_ _

_ _“The fire…” I remember, my heart suddenly jolting. “Is the club ok?” _ _

_ _To my surprise, a ghost of a smile appears on his face._ _

_ _“She certainly sustained some damage,” he nods. “Entire theater is pretty much destroyed, plus some. But nothing a few repairs can’t fix.”_ _

_ _His worried expression comes back over his face suddenly, and he looks back at the ground, almost turning away from me completely. _ _

_ _“After it’s all been renovated, I… I’m gonna sell it.” _ _

_ _At this, I’m almost positive I must still be delirious. _ _

_ _“What?” I let out a confused laugh. _ _

_ _He nods, his somber expression unchanging. _ _

_ _“Finn…” his voice is shaking, and he takes a seat on the bed beside me, but still doesn’t look at me. “It’s best… after all of this… I can’t stay here. In Canto Bight. Or anywhere near here.” _ _

_ _I don’t answer him. Now I know I must still be loopy. I’m dreaming, or hallucinating, or… _ _

_ _“Kylo has family in Alderaan,” he continues when I haven’t answered in a while. “He and I are… going to head out there. Jones is dead, but there are plenty of people who were apart of his group, and… I think I’ve pissed everyone off here long enough. Vera’s going to stay here and help run the club with whoever buys it. But I… I can’t stay.” _ _

_ _I take a moment to process all of this information. My first thought was to tell him he could of course stay here. He would just have to lay low for a little while. Or maybe he could move out to Takodana, near the boarding house. Or maybe even live in the boarding house with us. _ _

_ _But even before I’ve thought of all of this, I know it’s not a possibility. For one thing, Poe is right. Jones no doubt had deep connections all around the city. There’s always going to be someone looking for Poe, and now that Jones and half his crew are dead, people are definitely going to be looking for revenge. _ _

_ _But also, Poe isn’t exactly the type of person who can keep a low profile. Even if he tried changing his name and living quietly for a while, he’d slip up eventually. It was just his nature, to be out there in the world, making sure everyone hears him. _ _

_ _“When are you leaving?” I ask him, my voice sounding monotone as I try to hold back any emotion. I can already see how horrified he is at telling me this. _ _

_ _“As soon as possible,” he answers, his voice quieter, barely above a whisper. “I was going to wait until you were better.” _ _

_ _I want to cry, and scream. I want to be angry at Poe for making me fall in love with him in the first place, I want to sob in his arms and beg him to stay, for me, even if it means he’ll be in constant danger. I want to try to come up with a plan, some way for him to move somewhere closer to where I can at least visit him. Alderaan is five hours away, and there’s no way I have enough money to travel from here to there one time, let alone enough to keep a relationship with him. _ _

_ _And then I start thinking. _ _

_ _Why would I want to come back?_ _

_ _I can hardly remember my dull life before I met Poe. How dark everything seemed, how hopeless the direction my life seemed to be going in. My dreams of something amazing happening, of a spark finally leading the way to who I was meant to be, died out a long time ago. Until Poe. _ _

_ _If he’s starting a new life… why can’t I?_ _

_ _I look over at him, my heart beating wildly as a smile spreads over my lips. _ _

_ _“Poe,” I speak, reaching over to try and grasp his hand. “Poe, look at me.” _ _

_ _He turns his head, and I see a tear has run down the side of his face as he gives me a look far beyond desperate. He looks… broken. _ _

_ _“Poe… do you remember what I told you? While laying in this exact bed with you?” _ _

_ _His brow furrows as he tries shaking away his sorrow to recall._ _

_ _“You don’t have to be alone,” I tell him as I grasp his hand in mine. “Ever again. I’m not leaving you, as long as you’ll have me.” _ _

_ _He just stares at me, an almost amusing look of bewilderment on his face. _ _

_ _“I don’t understand…”_ _

_ _“I want to come with you. To Alderaan. There’s nothing for me here without you.” _ _

_ _Relief only just begins to filter through his face, but he closes his eyes and slowly shakes his head._ _

_ _“Finn, I can’t just… take away your life here…”_ _

_ _“What life?” I shrug. “I go to community college and spend my weekends working at a freaking furniture store. I’ve been lonely and tired and scared for years now, just… waiting for something. I know there’s something for me out there. And it’s not here. I want to find it with you.” _ _

_ _He starts to look more and more overjoyed, but a layer of guilt still plagues his eyes. _ _

_ _“But… your friends, your school…” _ _

_ _“I can stay in contact with my friends,” I assure him. “Poe, I need to start living my own life. All I’ve known is that small, sad little town. There’s no way I can build a satisfying life for myself there.”_ _

_ _To my great comfort, he cracks one of his familiar grins._ _

_ _“No, not now that you’ve had a taste of my lifestyle,” he teases. _ _

_ _“Exactly,” I smile back at him eagerly. _ _

_ _“But, don’t you have things in school that you need to… I don’t know, finish?”_ _

_ _I give another small shrug, shaking my head optimistically. _ _

_ _“What kind of schools do they have in Alderaan?” I ask him. _ _

_ _He finally breathes in disbelief, his face an overwhelming display of joy, excitement, consolation, and incredulity. _ _

_ _He leaps forward onto me, grabbing my face in his hands as he kisses me over and over again, hardly giving me time to breathe._ _

_ _“I’m going to find you the best fucking school in the entire city,” he promises in between kisses as I giggle dizzyingly. _ _

_ _“Ok, ok,” I laugh, unable to move my body away from his attack. “Stop before you kill me!” _ _

_ _He seems to remember my injured shoulder at this point and quickly leans away. _ _

_ _“Shit, sorry,” he laughs, checking me over to make sure I’m not dying. _ _

_ _He sighs, his hands stroking over my face again._ _

_ _“Finn, I… I love you. You have no idea…” _ _

_ _I nod, reaching up to catch the tears that begin rapidly falling from his eyes. He catches my hand in his, bringing it to his lips. _ _

_ _“Thank you,” he whispers, closing his eyes as he brushes my hand with his lips. “Thank you for everything.” _ _

_ _I bring him down so that he’s laying on my good shoulder, kissing the top of his head as I stroke my hand through his hair. _ _

_ _“I love you,” I whisper to him. _ _

_ _It’s blissful for at least a moment, until BB-8 suddenly wants to join the party, hopping right up to try and worm his way between my armpit and Poe’s chest so that he can snuggle in between the two of us._ _

_ _

_ _We’re in Alderaan within the next two weeks. In that amount of time, I’m able to get everything in order with work, school, the boarding house, and the Foster Care services. Since I’m moving away and don’t plan on having any contact here aside from Rey, they can’t support me any longer. But I have enough of my own money to keep me steady for a while, and Poe will help me out as well. Especially because he made an incredible fortune selling the hottest club in Canto Bight._ _

_ _It’s much colder in Alderaan than it was in Takodana, but it’s sunny the first few months we’ve moved, since it’s spring. Apparently it snows in the winter, so that should be an interesting experience. _ _

_ _Poe and I end up moving into a country house that Kylo’s mother once owned and was up for grabs, I suppose. It was quite a sight to see Poe’s reaction at living in an isolated villa out in the country, but civilization is only about fifteen minutes away, so he learns to survive. And he has me with him the entire time. And BB-8. The little feline has become almost apart of my family now as well. He’s a part of Poe, which makes him more dear to me than anything. _ _

_ _Living with Poe turns out to be much easier than I ever expected it to be. Really, the only arguments we have are about who should do which chores. And if that’s the only scuffle, I’ll take it any day._ _

_ _I end up going to a nice university that’s only a twenty minute drive from our house. I decide to go for a media studies major, something I didn’t have the option of doing back in Takodana. The classes are much more involved and informative compared to the elective courses I took back home. _ _

_ _Poe being Poe, searches through and meets every single person in the small city we live by until he ends up finding an elegant little building for sale. He buys it and ends up turning it into a restaurant, which of course is quickly the most successful one in town, due to Poe’s extravagant hosting style and the exotic Vegas-like presentation of the place, which of course includes live shows. _ _

_ _It’s definitely a lively little place that soon becomes his new pride and joy, but it’s nowhere near as large a sensation as the club, and certainly won’t attract any unwanted attention outside Alderaan. _ _

_ _After going to school for a little while, I decide to take up a job working at the restaurant, at least to make some money until I graduate. And let me be honest when I say that working a customer service job is much more emotionally manageable when your boss is Poe Dameron. _ _

_ _Kylo was insistent that Rey move out with us once he learned that I was coming along. He moved into a small apartment when we first arrived and kept in constant contact with her. But she was a little more hesitant about leaving her entire life behind and starting anew. So she stayed and finished out the semester in college before finally deciding life in Takodana is pretty boring without me or her boyfriend. _ _

_ _Once she moved out here with us, Kylo moved into a larger apartment with her, and she became a hostess at the restaurant. _ _

_ _So, here we all are. Life has never been better for me. Even better when I realize it hasn’t even really begun yet. Perhaps there will be more places to go after I graduate. The important thing is, I’m actually confident I have a life to live after college._ _

_ _I haven’t stopped loving Poe yet, and don’t foresee I ever will. I used to be so scared at how fast we moved things, I’m not anymore. Because I know that, whatever happens, I will be ok, and everything will go the way it’s meant to. _ _

_ _Maybe it won’t end up working out, and Poe and I will go our separate ways sometime in the future. _ _

_ _Or maybe we’ll just live happily ever after._ _


End file.
